TRANSPORT

Airports: Security

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures are in place to regulate and monitor the performance of private companies responsible for providing security at UK airports.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The national aviation security programme lays down the security measures and standards in the UK. Airports, airlines and others are legally bound to comply with mandated security measures but they are free to sub-contract specific statutory security tasks to third parties. The Department for Transport monitors through its compliance activity the standards of implementation and where performance is below the standards required will take action against the regulated party to ensure that improvements are made.

Humber Bridge

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how much longer one carriageway in each direction is likely to remain closed on the Humber Bridge; on what basis it was decided that work on the bridge should not be carried out on a 24 hour basis; and if she will arrange for the tolls to be reduced while work is being carried out.

Rosie Winterton: These are all matters for the Humber Bridge Board.

Off-road Vehicles: Leisure

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance her Department has given local authorities on the use of off-road vehicles for recreational purposes; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: I have been asked to reply.
	DEFRA has published two guidance documents on the use of off road vehicles for recreational purposes, "Regulating the use of motor vehicles on public rights of way and off road—A guide for Local Authorities, Police and Community Safety Partnerships" and "Making the Best of Byways". Together these documents set out the powers available to tackle illegal practices, provide good practice examples, and give advice on both the practical management and maintenance of routes.

Public Transport: Crimes of Violence

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many incidences of violent crime were recorded by the British Transport Police since 2004, broken down by region.

Tom Harris: This information is not held by the Department for Transport but by the British Transport Police who can be contacted at: British Transport Police, 25 Camden Road, London NW1 9LN, E-mail:
	general.enquiries@btp.pnn.police.uk.

Railways: Freight

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when she expects the Minister for Railways to announce the upgrading of the freight route between Southampton and Birmingham.

Tom Harris: As detailed in the then Secretary of State's written ministerial statement to Parliament of 18 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 134-6WS, the Southampton to west coast mainline rail gauge enhancement scheme is one of the strategic freight schemes being considered for funding from the productivity strand of the Transport Innovation Fund.
	Final decisions on each of the schemes under consideration will be taken through the Department's investment appraisal framework on an individual basis, as each business case is completed. I hope to be in a position to make further announcements about the individual schemes in the course of this year.

Railways: Vehicle Access Barriers

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what evaluation she has made of the trial of vehicle access barriers at Victoria and Waterloo stations.

Tom Harris: The aim of the trial was to test the practicalities of deploying and maintaining portable access control barriers in an operational environment.
	The trial proved that such barriers could be deployed while maintaining adequate passenger flow rates and emergency access. It also proved, however, that the deployment of such barriers needs very careful planning due to their weight and the resulting loading on the supporting structure.
	Further to this trial the Department for Transport is undertaking survey work at stations, in co-operation with operators and the British Transport Police, to assess options for more permanent vehicle access control measures. We are also working with operators to ensure that vehicle access control issues are taken into account as part of planned station developments.

Railways: Standards

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many trains were cancelled in  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) the last 12 months; and what reasons were given for cancellations, broken down by train operating company.

Tom Harris: Train cancellation data for the rail network as a whole is collected and processed by Network Rail. For a response, the hon. Member may wish to contact Network Rail's Chief Executive at the following address:
	John Armitt,
	Chief Executive,
	Network Rail,
	40 Melton Street,
	London NW1 2EE

Roads: Safety Measures (Cornwall)

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions her Department has had with Cornwall county council on road safety issues in Cornwall.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There have been no recent road safety specific issues discussed between the Department for Transport and Cornwall county council.
	In December 2006, the Department notified Cornwall of its assessment of their second local transport plan, covering the period 2006-07 to 2010-11. The road safety element of the plan was assessed as being "Excellent" which meant that the Department considered that Cornwall are on track to achieve beyond the 2010 national road safety targets.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Members: Postal Services

Graham Allen: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission if he will take steps to restore the availability of casual stationery and envelopes in the Members' Post Office; and how much has been saved by preventing Members from using franked envelopes in the Members' Post Office.

Nick Harvey: The Post Office has continued to supply limited amounts of stationery including prepaid envelopes, and these are now recorded against Members' names. Savings of around £5,000 have been made in the first quarter of 2007-08 by ending the issue of casual stationery and envelopes in the Members' Post Office.
	In its report on the Communications Allowance (First Report 2006-07, HC 319), the Members Estimate Committee directly linked the new allowance to an annual limit of £7,000 per Member on pre-paid stationery. The House approved the report on 28 March 2007.
	The operation of the arrangement will be kept under review.

PRIME MINISTER

Ministers

Mark Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library copies of the letters of appointment of each of the Ministers in the Government.

Gordon Brown: In forming the new Government, I spoke to Ministers and discussed the Government's priorities, but did not exchange letters of appointment.

Select Committees: Publications

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister when he expects the Government to respond to the fifth report of the Public Administration Select Committee session 2005-06, "Whitehall Confidential? The Publication of Political Memoirs" HC689.

Gordon Brown: The Government are considering the report of the Public Administration Select Committee, "Whitehall Confidential? The Publication of Political Memoirs" and will respond shortly.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Civil Servants: Pay

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what the salary range is for each pay band of civil servants in the Cabinet Office.

Gillian Merron: Since April 1996 all Departments and agencies have had delegated responsibility for the pay and grading of staff, except for those below the senior civil service. Current Cabinet Office salary ranges for each pay band can be found at:
	http://careers.civil-service.gov.uk/Index.asp?txtNavID=176&txtOverRideDocID=144&635132=&internal=true
	Details on current senior civil service pay bands is available from:
	www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/performance/scs.

Departments: Postal Services

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what volume of correspondence his Department sent  (a) by Royal Mail and  (b) by other commercial delivery services in each of the last five years; and what the reasons were for the use of other commercial delivery services.

Gillian Merron: Information on the volume of correspondence sent by  (a) Royal Mail and  (b) by other commercial delivery services can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The vast majority of our mail services are provided by Royal Mail. Commercial delivery services are used when a 'same day' service is required within the UK and for time sensitive international deliveries

Departments: Publicity

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what assessment he has made of the cost effectiveness of advertising commissioned by his Department in the last 12 months.

Gillian Merron: The Cabinet Office currently only uses advertising for recruitment purposes. Cost effectiveness plays a key part in recruitment advertising, for example all vacancies are advertised on the Civil Service Gateway at no cost. For the graduate fast stream, which the Cabinet Office runs for the whole of the civil service, the Cabinet Office employs a mixed media approach, which a 2007 survey of applicants confirmed as the most cost-effective.
	Cost-effectiveness is a key part of the Cabinet Office's best practice guidance for Government communicators when commissioning advertising, this can be seen at:
	www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/government_communication/engage/planning_process.asp

BUSINESS, ENTERPRISE AND REGULATORY REFORM

Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what funding his Department provided to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service in each of the last five years; and what funding his Department plans to provide in each of the next three years.

Patrick McFadden: BERR funding for ACAS over the last five years is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2003-04 46.0 
			 2004-05 47.3 
			 2005-06 47.3 
			 2006-07 45.2 
			 2007-08 43.0 
		
	
	These figures do not include the following provided by BERR to ACAS:
	Investment Funding of £15.2 million to finance efficiency savings for the three years from 2005-06;
	Capital Funding of £1.2 million for 2005-06, £1.0 million for 2006-07 and £1.0 million for 2007-08.
	Funding for the period covered by the 2007 comprehensive spending review (i.e. 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11) has yet to be agreed with ACAS.

Departments: Ministerial Duties

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the priorities of the Minister for the South West are in 2007.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 9 July 2007
	I have been asked to reply.
	As the Minister for the South West, I am conducting a series of visits to all counties in the region to seek the views of local political leaders and other interested parties about their priorities. My role will be to champion the region and to represent the region in the formulation of central government policy.

Employment: Disciplinary Proceedings

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if his Department will bring forward proposals to increase the discretion of employment tribunals in their consideration of the rules governing employment disciplinary procedures.

Patrick McFadden: BERR keeps the employment tribunal rules under constant review, with the objective of improving the delivery of justice for all parties.

Employment: Industrial Disputes

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether his Department plans to abolish fixed conciliation periods in employment disputes.

Patrick McFadden: The consultation paper "Resolving disputes in the workplace", published on 21 March 2007, invited views on whether the fixed terms for conciliation in employment disputes should be repealed. My Department's plans on the way forward will be set out in our response to that consultation which will be published in due course.

Mediation

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment his Department has made of the level of awards made to injured parties in employment disputes who have  (a) settled and  (b) not settled their cases through mediation.

Patrick McFadden: Mediation is a confidential process, private to the parties involved. No award is made in relation to cases that are settled through a mediation process prior to a tribunal hearing.

Mediation

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what information his Department makes available to the public on mediation in employment disputes; how this information is made available; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: BERR makes information available to the public on employment dispute resolution through the Directgov and Business Link websites. BERR also funds the work of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) including the provision of mediation and conciliation for employment disputes.

Parental Leave: Tamworth

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what estimate his Department has made of the number of people from low income families in Tamworth constituency taking  (a) paternity leave and  (b) maternity leave in the last period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent estimates of take-up of maternity and paternity leave are based on the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners.
	Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave. 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave.
	The Department does not collect data on low income families so has not estimated the number of low income families which have taken up paternity or maternity leave. The Department does not collect data on take-up of maternity and paternity leave at constituency level.

Post Office: Land

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether the sites being considered by the Government for release for development of affordable homes include sites owned by the Post Office.

Iain Wright: holding answer 16 July 2007
	 I have been asked to reply.
	No. The recent review of surplus land was directed at central Government Departments and their agencies and as Royal Mail Holdings, of which Post Office Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary, is a self-financing public corporation, they were not included in the review.

Regional Development Agencies: Official Hospitality

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the expenditure of each regional development agency was on hospitality and entertainment in each year since 1997.

Stephen Timms: The following table shows the regional development agencies' (RDAs) expenditure on hospitality and corporate entertainment since their creation to the last full financial year. There are some variances between RDAs in the way this expenditure is classified and recorded.
	
		
			  RDA  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 AWM 8,500 28,500 (1)163,500 8,600 8,900 8,000 15,816 43,862 
			 EEDA n/a n/a n/a 5,849 11,608 11,118 12,534 7,153 
			 EMDA 284 17,870 6,510 38,722 48,344 48,301 48,185 20,077 
			 LDA 0 209 31,220 16,801 23,133 19,462 27,341 19,202 
			 NWDA 7,144 16,750 21,556 32,908 38,834 35,639 44,975 45,209 
			 ONE 6,659 2,849 30,853 50,644 40,360 34,600 40,421 38,324 
			 SEEDA 24,304 34,689 47,063 36,089 50,858 50,640 35,995 42,061 
			 SWRDA 8,937 13,045 17,723 25,362 17,065 20,552 21,531 17,785 
			 YF 3,405 20,095 19,616 44,992 64,428 39,276 29,397 42,460 
			 (1) Exceptional hospitality costs in respect of the 2002 Ryder Cup. This was one off expenditure giving significant coverage to the West Midlands around the globe.

Regional Planning and Development: South West Region

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment the Minister for the South West has made of the regional strategy for the South West.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 9 July 2007
	I have been asked to reply.
	There are two regional strategies—the regional spatial strategy and the regional economic strategy. As the 'Governance of Britain' (Cmd 7170) set out, as the Minister for the South West, along with the other regional Ministers, I will advise the relevant Secretary of State on the approval of regional strategies.

WALES

Departments: Legislation

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales 
	(1)  what legislative provisions introduced by his Department since 1997 have been repealed;
	(2)  what legislative provisions introduced by his Department since 1997 have not yet been brought into force.

Peter Hain: The information is as follows:
	 Government of Wales Act 1998
	Parts have been repealed by the Government of Wales Act 2006 as set out in schedule 12 of that Act.
	 Health (Wales) Act 2003
	The entire Act was brought into force on 26 November 2003. Parts of schedule 1 and 3 were repealed by the NHS (Consequential Provisions) Act 2007; Part of schedule 2 was repealed by the Public Audit (Wales) Act 2005 and part of schedule 3 by the Government of Wales Act 2006.
	 Public Audit (Wales) Act 2004
	The entire Act has been brought into force. The substantive provisions were brought into force by three commencement orders, with effect from dates between 1 January and 20 July 2005; the rest had come into force on Royal Assent.
	Sections 2, 6-11 and 65(2) were repealed by the Government of Wales Act 2006. Parts of schedule 2 (which contains amendments of other enactments) have been repealed by the Government of Wales Act 2006, the Health Act 2006, the NHS (Consequential Provisions) Act 2007, and the Education and Inspections Act 2006. Part of section 54 was repealed by the Public Audit (Wales) Act 2004 (Relaxation of Restriction on Disclosure) Order 2005.
	 Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Act 2005
	The Act has been brought into force on 12 October 2005, except for section 20 and paragraph 15(5) of schedule 1; as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 2006, the following provisions have been repealed with effect from 25 May 2007:
	sections 12(9), 16(9), 21(11), 23(6), 24(2)(b) and (3), 44(3) and parts of schedules 1 and 6.
	 Commissioner for Older People (Wales) Act 2006
	The entire Act has been brought into force. The substantive provisions were brought into force with effect from 14 October 2006; the rest had come into force on Royal Assent.
	Parts of section 27(1) (definitions) have been repealed as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 2006 and changes in NHS legislation. Section 28(6) has been repealed as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 2006. The repeals were made by the Government of Wales Act 2006 (Consequential Modifications and Transitional Provisions) Order 2007 and the NHS (Consequential Provisions) Act 2007.
	 Transport (Wales) Act 2006
	The entire Act has been brought into force. The substantive provisions were brought into force with effect from 26 May 2006; the rest had come into force on Royal Assent.
	Sections 2(6) and (7) and 5(9) were repealed as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 2006 by the Government of Wales Act 2006 (Consequential Modifications and Transitional Provisions) Order 2007.
	 Government of Wales Act 2006
	No provisions have been repealed and the Act has now come into force in accordance with section 161 except for sections 107, 108 and 110 to 115 which will only come into force in accordance with section 105.

Departments: Legislation

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what criminal offences have been introduced by his Department in primary legislation since October 2006.

Peter Hain: None.

Ministerial Red Boxes

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many ministerial red boxes his Department bought in each of the last five years; what the cost of each was; who the suppliers were; and what tendering process was used in selecting them.

Peter Hain: Ministerial boxes are used by successive Ministers over many years. No new boxes have been ordered in the last five years.
	Any new ones would be ordered through contracts put in place by the Ministry of Justice.

Flags

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will hold discussions with the First Minister on the flying of the Union Flag on UK Government buildings in Wales.

Peter Hain: In line with the Government's decision to relax the rules for flying the Union Flag on Government buildings, while consultation on changing the rules takes place, the flying of the Union Flag on UK Government buildings in Wales is a matter for the individual Departments.

Gender Identity Disorder

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Chief Executive of Health Commission Wales on the legal requirement to provide treatment for gender dysphoria and the implications for institutions providing services in England for Welsh patients; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: The responsibility for health in Wales has been devolved to the Welsh Assembly Government. I have regular discussions with the First Minister on a range of issues including the commissioning of services by the NHS in Wales.
	It is a legal requirement for health bodies to ensure that they do not impose a 'blanket ban' on particular procedures or diagnoses without taking regard of the individual circumstances in each case. However, it is up to the local health boards in Wales to make decisions on setting local priorities for the commissioning and funding of services.

Private Finance Initiative

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will hold discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the use of private finance initiatives in UK Government-sponsored projects in Wales.

Peter Hain: The private finance initiatives are an important part of the Government's strategy for delivering high quality public services.
	In assessing where PFI is appropriate, the Government's approach is based on its commitment to efficiency, equity and accountability and the principles of public sector reform. PFI is only used where it can meet these requirements and deliver clear value for money without sacrificing the terms and conditions of staff.
	Where these conditions are met, PFI delivers a number of important benefits. By requiring the private sector to put its own capital at risk and to deliver clear levels of service to the public over the long-term, PFI helps to deliver high quality public services and ensure that public assets are delivered on time and to budget.
	It is a matter for individual Government Departments to decide whether to use PFI in projects in Wales applying normal value for money principles.

Tidal Power: Severn Estuary

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the  (a) advantages and  (b) disadvantages of tidal power generation in the Severn Estuary; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: The Government's energy strategy outlined in our Energy White Paper (EWP) demonstrates that we firmly believe it is vital that we keep all our options open, including the various opportunities and technologies that tidal power has to offer us.
	Wales is supremely well placed to harness the benefits of tidal and wave power because we have such an extensive coastline. However, we are some way off from drawing final conclusions. That is why the Government are working with the Welsh Assembly Government, the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC), the South West Regional Development Agency and other key interested parties to look strategically at the tidal resource in the UK.
	As our EWP states, the SDC launched a study, the purpose of which is to consider whether the impact of climate change justifies the potential costs and benefits of all tidal technologies including the barrage and tidal lagoons, and their public acceptability. The SDC aims to publish the report this towards the end of the summer.
	The work that the SDC is undertaking will not be the only study on tidal technologies. Further detailed studies will need to be conducted, and that these will also include for example, assessments on the environmental impact and the EU Birds and Habitats Directive. So the SDC study will by no means be the last word, but a progressive next step.
	It is vital that we consider all options if we are to respond to the twin challenges of climate change and security of supply. Tidal technology has an important role to play in meeting these challenges.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Casinos

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was spent on the  (a) Casino Advisory Panel,  (b) casinos impact scoping study and  (c) development of the (i) Gambling (Inviting Competing Applications for Casino Premises Licences) Regulations 2007 and (ii) Gambling (Categories of Casino) Regulations 2006.

Gerry Sutcliffe: When the Casino Advisory Panel submitted its Final Report to the Secretary of State on 30 January 2007 its total costs were approximately £400,000.
	A group led by Lancaster university has been commissioned to advise on the methodology for the assessment of the social and economic impact of the new casinos. This work has cost £50,000.
	The Gambling (Inviting Competing Applications for Casino Premises Licences) Regulations 2007 and Gambling (Categories of Casinos) Regulations 2006 were prepared by officials and lawyers working for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. No external costs were incurred in the development of these regulations.

Olympic Games: Greater London

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 14 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1178W, on the Olympic Games, on what date KPMG stopped providing ongoing advice on the cost of the Olympics.

Tessa Jowell: I have been asked to reply 
	as Minister for the Olympics.
	KPMG were contracted to provide advice to the Department until July 2006. Following that KPMG have been contracted by the Olympic Delivery Authority to provide ongoing assistance in compiling their cost estimates.

Radio: Western Isles

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance is planned for improvements to the infrastructure for local radio in the Western Isles.

James Purnell: The Government have no role in the building or improvement of local radio infrastructure. Ofcom has responsibility for spectrum planning issues, while broadcasters themselves are responsible for transmission matters, including the building and maintaining of transmitters.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission: Powers

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to require the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission to apply to a court before  (a) confiscating a driving licence and  (b) removing a passport; what the reasons are for the proposed element of judicial involvement in each case; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: As is currently the case with the Child Support Agency, the Commission will need to apply to the court to seek an order disqualifying the non-resident parent for holding or obtaining a driving licence.
	The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill does however make provision for the Commission to administratively disqualify the non-resident parent for holding or obtaining travel authorisation. The disqualification would though be suspended, pending a court hearing, in the event that the non-resident parent lodged an appeal against the decision within 28 days of receiving the notification.
	The loss of a driving licence has the potential to have an immediate and serious impact on the non-resident parent's day to day life, as well as implications for others—because people driving while disqualified are also uninsured. We have therefore decided that this decision should remain with the court. By contrast, most people require passports on relatively few occasions during the year, such as when taking foreign holidays.

Departments: European Union

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many officials in his Department are  (a) involved in assisting European Council negotiations,  (b) involved in assisting and advising the European Commission,  (c) seconded to the European Commission,  (d) involved in monitoring EU decisions, communications, regulations and directives,  (e) involved in enforcing compliance with EU decisions, communications, regulations and directives and  (f) involved in other work related to the European Council, Commission or Court of Justice.

James Plaskitt: Officials throughout the Department for Work and Pensions are involved in a full range of EU business. Those working specifically on the activities listed total: 16 in the International Employment and Social Policy Division; four in the Private Pensions Policy and Regulation Division; two in the Family, Poverty and Work Division; nine in the Law, Governance and Special Policy Group; eight in European Social Fund Division; and 25 in Jobcentre Plus, supporting EU labour market mobility. The Department has two officials seconded to the European Commission, but a complete breakdown of the figures as requested would incur disproportionate cost.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Beaches: Safety

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people  (a) died and  (b) were injured as a result of accidents on and around (i) local authority and (ii) privately owned beaches in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

John Healey: Information on the national total of deaths and injuries on local authority and privately owned beaches is currently not held centrally.

Beaches: Safety

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent discussions she has had with  (a) local authorities,  (b) the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and  (c) other interested parties on (i) responsibility and (ii) facilities for beach safety; and if she will make a statement.

John Healey: The provision of information and practical beach safety measures is at the discretion of beach owners, including local authorities. Awareness of these issues is high among coastal authorities and many undertake these activities as part of their strategy to support and encourage tourism.
	In February 2007, following discussions between the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group and the Department, the group wrote to all coastal local authorities in England, recommending to those with specific responsibilities for managing beaches, the offer by the RNLI to provide local authorities with a risk assessment service at no cost.

Community Development: Bedfordshire

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what arrangements her Department had in place to monitor the Bedfordshire Citizen Service Partnership; and what information her Department holds on arrangements for oversight and scrutiny of the partnership put in place by Bedfordshire county council.

John Healey: At the start of the project the Department agreed outcomes and milestones for the Bedfordshire Citizen Service Partnership with the lead authority, Bedfordshire county council.
	Bedfordshire county council was responsible for putting in place arrangements to monitor progress on the project. The Department requested quarterly progress reports and a final implementation report from the lead authority. Progress reports from the Citizen Service Partnership indicate that a Joint Committee was established, made up of one nominated member from Bedfordshire county council, Luton council, Mid-Bedfordshire district council and South Bedfordshire district council. The responsibility of the Joint Committee was to facilitate all the functions in relation to the electronic delivery of services on behalf of the authorities. It met quarterly.

Community Development: South West Region

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to increase black and minority ethnic engagement and participation in rural community life in south-west England; and what discussions she has had with South West Action for Communities in Rural England Network on this matter.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Commission on Integration and Cohesion was commissioned to investigate issues relating to Cohesion and Integration in August 2006. A report was published on 14 June. Over the next few months the Government will be engaging widely with partners, and will respond fully in the autumn. This will include taking into account issues affecting black and minority ethnic engagement in rural communities.
	The Department for Communities and Local Government funded the Black South West Network to work with the South West ACRE (Action for Communities in Rural England) Network to enhance black and minority ethnic engagement in the region.
	In March 2007 a multi-agency group, chaired by the South West Regional Assembly, was established to examine the effects of migrant workers on communities in the region and to identify actions necessary to support both those workers and the communities, both urban and rural, in which they live.

Council Tax

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she has examined the value for money obtained from the council tax since May 1997.

John Healey: Good progress has been made in delivering value for money for local taxpayers, as shown from information contained in annual efficiency statements since 2004-05. The Local Government White Paper sets out steps to ensure a performance framework remains in place to underpin continual improvement in value for money .

Ethnic Groups: South West Region

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what percentage of the total population in each South West local authority area were of ethnic minority origin in the latest year for which figures are available.

Parmjit Dhanda: The most recent information available was published in the 2001 census.
	The headline Census Population by Ethnic Group statistics are contained within Key Statistics table KS06 which can be accessed via the Neighbourhood Statistics website:
	http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/Downloadl.do

Housing Associations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many community controlled housing associations there are in  (a) England and  (b) Essex.

Iain Wright: Housing associations registered with the Housing Corporation are not defined or categorised as "community controlled". There are 246 housing co-operatives registered with the Corporation in England of which one operates in Colchester, Essex. In addition five registered social landlords in England have been established on "Community Gateway" principles of community empowerment and devolution of management and ownership. Six others are currently seeking registration with the Corporation on this basis, of which one is based in Braintree in Essex.

Regional Government: East Midlands

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  if she will appoint a nine-member all party executive for the East Midlands region as a sounding board for regional issues;
	(2)  if she will consider bringing forward proposals to elect a nine-member all party executive for the East Midlands region.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the oral statement made to the House on 17 July 2007, announcing the publication of the review of sub-national regeneration and economic development. The review sets out the Government's proposals for the future of regional institutions including regional assemblies.

Regional Government: South West Region

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if the Minister for the South West will make it his policy  (a) not to support the continued existence of the South West Regional Assembly and  (b) not to allocate any functions or any funding to that Assembly.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the oral statement made to the House on 17 July 2007 announcing the publication of the Review of Sub-national Regeneration and Economic Development. The review sets out the Government's proposals for the future of regional institutions including regional assemblies.

Religious Buildings: Mosques

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many mosques there are in the UK.

Parmjit Dhanda: The information requested is not held centrally.

Shropshire County Council: Unitary Councils

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what documentation her Department received from political lobbyists working for Shropshire county council in  (a) February,  (b) March,  (c) April,  (d) May and  (e) June 2007.

John Healey: We have received no documentation from political lobbyists in connection with the proposal for a unitary Shropshire.

Shropshire County Council: Unitary Councils

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance her Department provided to local councils in  (a) running and  (b) funding campaigns over their bids for unitary authority status.

John Healey: The Department wrote to all chief executives in areas affected by the 16 unitary proposals under consultation, drawing their attention to the code of recommended practice on local authority publicity. The code makes it clear that local authorities should not at any time use public funds to mount publicity campaigns whose primary purpose is to persuade public to hold a particular view on a question of policy, and that authorities must take particular care when publicity is issued immediately prior to an election.

Shropshire County Council: Unitary Councils

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to meet councillors from Shrewsbury council to discuss the unitary authority proposals for Shropshire.

John Healey: On 19 June, Ministers met with representatives of a number of Shropshire district councils, including Shrewsbury and Atcham to hear their representations on the proposal from Shropshire county council and Oswestry borough council for a unitary Shropshire. The consultation closed on 22 June and we have no plans for any such further meetings.

Shropshire County Council: Unitary Councils

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings her Department has had with lobbyists working for Shropshire county council to discuss the proposed unitary authority for Shropshire.

John Healey: None.

World War II: Genocide

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the Holocaust Educational Trust's Lessons from Auschwitz project.

Parmjit Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore) on 17 July 2007,  Official Report, column 217W.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average farm size was in the  (a) dairy,  (b) crop,  (c) horticulture,  (d) livestock,  (e) poultry and  (f) organic sectors in (i) Cornwall, (ii) the South West and (iii) England in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following tables show the average holding size in (i) Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (ii) the South West and (iii) England by predominant activity for 1995 to 2005. Holdings which farm organically are included in the results but cannot be identified separately. Data for 2006 will be available later this month.
	 Source:
	June Agricultural Survey.
	
		
			  Average size of registered holdings (hectares) in (i) Cornwall, (ii) the South West and ( ii i) England 1995 to 2005 by predominant farm type 
			   Cereals  General cropping  Horticulture  Pigs and poultry  Dairy  Cattle and sheep (LFA)  Cattle and sheep (Lowland)  Mixed  Other  Total 
			  1995   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 66.31 64.32 13.7 11.39 63.49 50.14 33.78 74.06 13.65 41.33 
			 South West Region 118.29 87.93 10.43 16.79 74.48 62.34 35.56 103.78 17.45 51.37 
			 England 119.78 124.53 10.94 16.44 70.32 89.17 35.86 104.35 17.32 63.42 
			
			  1996   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 67.84 60.27 11.24 10.65 65.35 50.38 33.35 73.87 13.30 40.87 
			 South West Region 119.47 80.35 9.78 16.55 75.53 59.29 35.90 104.74 16.67 50.87 
			 England 120.02 126.25 10.98 16.27 71.35 89.11 35.92 105.58 16.71 63.52 
			
			  1997   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 67.09 71.84 13.99 10.72 66.16 47.67 34.54 72.05 11.42 40.43 
			 South West Region 119.88 87.34 11.24 16.23 75.61 59.75 36.13 102.95 15.27 50.63 
			 England 122.65 133.25 12.04 15.92 71.48 90.82 36.17 103.55 15.49 63.71 
			
			  1998   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 67.77 67.41 14.10 10.84 66.55 46.71 34.82 73.77 11.43 40.12 
			 South West Region 119.51 86.95 11.59 15.46 74.43 60.12 35.82 107.36 15.60 50.23 
			 England 121.93 135.31 12.18 15.27 70.85 87.27 35.68 106.10 15.89 63.32 
			
			  1999   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 73.68 74.00 15.05 10.59 69.38 47.32 33.51 76.25 11.63 40.62 
			 South West Region 124.26 97.34 11.87 15.41 77.03 59.72 34.36 106.87 13.92 48.69 
			 England 123.93 138.57 12.67 15.22 73.36 86.47 34.41 108.16 14.62 62.16 
			  2000   
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 66.50 84.39 12.00 5.81 72.36 49.81 33.72 70.79 6.13 33.25 
			 South West Region 128.88 100.81 8.65 10.92 82.19 62.41 34.03 101.80 7.73 41.43 
			 England 127.64 145.50 9.92 12.10 78.19 87.64 33.41 106.57 8.25 53.91 
		
	
	
		
			   Cereals  General cropping  Horticulture  Specialist pigs  Specialist poultry  Dairy  Grazing livestock LFA  Grazing livestock lowland  Mixed  Other  Total 
			  2001
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 78.62 85.03 12.86 8.44 5.38 77.50 56.13 32.11 61.45 5.69 33.36 
			 South West Region 136.50 101.44 9.98 16.61 12.43 87.77 67.16 31.73 80.92 8.58 40.95 
			 England 130.88 146.51 11.71 16.93 14.18 83.52 86.55 29.65 81.78 10.41 52.25 
			 
			  2002
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 67.42 82.54 13.21 6.40 4.22 76.30 53.10 30.48 53.88 5.17 29.95 
			 South West Region 131.02 107.98 9.78 14.01 8.72 87.36 64.56 31.50 71.00 6.26 37.19 
			 England 130.75 151.74 11.48 15.24 9.99 83.60 87.73 28.66 73.21 6.66 48.43 
			 
			 2003
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 66.93 87.90 14.03 6.58 4.29 79.61 58.24 31.09 56.64 5.26 30.47 
			 South West Region 131.97 99.72 10.17 11.84 8.83 91.70 68.91 31.89 74.87 6.37 37.44 
			 England 131.54 150.50 11.86 13.68 10.18 87.24 90.54 29.16 73.78 6.71 48.13 
			 
			  2004
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 65.86 89.15 15.10 6.37 4.70 82.21 52.71 30.15 69.88 6.01 31.28 
			 South West Region 124.10 102.90 10.46 10.68 8.91 91.41 66.38 31.10 91.40 6.46 37.20 
			 England 126.87 153.64 12.18 12.37 9.79 87.21 87.78 27.74 90.09 6.73 47.54 
			 
			  2005
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 76.05 92.60 14.41 6.14 5.19 81.25 52.69 32.29 64.44 6.73 31.31 
			 South West Region 128.73 115.73 10.45 10.24 8.78 92.29 67.34 32.61 82.70 7.36 37.12 
			 England 132.21 153.72 12.20 11.73 8.61 86.93 91.14 28.84 83.57 7.49 47.36 
			  Notes: 1. There have been changes in the farm type classifications therefore comparison over time is not possible for some categories. 2. Prior to 2000 minor holdings are not included in the figures. From 2000 onwards all holdings are included. A minor holding has to meet all the following conditions: (a) have a total area of less than six hectares (b) a labour requirement of less than 100 standard person days (c) no regular full-time farmer or worker (d) a glasshouse area of less than 100 square metres (e) the occupier does not farm another holding 3. The introduction of the Single Payment scheme in 2005 has lead to an increase in the number of registered holdings.  Source: June agricultural survey

Agriculture

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the gross value added in  (a) Cornwall,  (b) the South West and  (c) the UK was of (i) dairy, (ii) crop, (iii) horticulture, (iv) livestock, (v) poultry and (vi) organic farming in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: Please find as follows a table detailing the available data which begins in 1995. Gross value added data for the different sectors of agriculture are not available. Gross output values are therefore provided as an alternative. Data for organic farming are not available.
	
		
			  Gross output values 
			  £ million 
			   1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
			 crop output (inc. potatoes) 73 67 54 55 57 45 53 38 41 46 31 
			 horticulture 44 43 39 41 40 43 32 39 53 52 58 
			 livestock 135 120 114 104 96 88 83 107 111 111 87 
			 poultry 6 8 9 7 7 6 6 3 2 3 3 
			 dairy 136 133 125 103 103 91 115 97 102 103 95 
			 
			  South West
			 crop output (inc. potatoes) 510 519 434 412 409 361 367 321 333 340 219 
			 horticulture 143 149 140 146 154 148 147 167 175 167 188 
			 livestock 756 704 663 595 528 497 454 573 590 589 477 
			 poultry 147 168 166 148 147 139 139 128 139 148 125 
			 dairy 913 891 824 681 675 593 723 620 644 647 598 
			 
			  UK
			 crop output (inc. potatoes) 5,744 5,550 4,512 4,380 4,334 3,814 3,781 3,784 3,996 4,177 2,862 
			 horticulture 1,950 2,045 1,827 1,893 1,931 1,798 1,856 1,847 1,987 1,930 2,063 
			 livestock 5,762 5,784 5,393 4,574 4,236 4,160 3,806 4,431 4,610 4,743 3,646 
			 poultry 1,486 1,662 1,632 1,521 1,403 1,438 1,471 1,390 1,471 1,464 1,428 
			 dairy 3,498 3,495 3,154 2,709 2,654 2,393 2,821 2,466 2,629 2,711 2,592 
		
	
	Note that the fall in output values in 2005 is partly a consequence of the introduction of the Single Payment scheme which is not included in output (as it is decoupled from production).

Agriculture

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average farm income in Cornwall was of  (a) dairy,  (b) crop,  (c) horticultures,  (d) livestock,  (e) poultry and  (f) organic farms in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: Table 1 shows average net farm income per farm in Cornwall for those farm types that are sufficiently represented in the Farm Business Survey from 1980. Table 2 shows comparable data for the South West Government Office Region. Data are not available on a comparable basis for 1979. Data on organic enterprises were not collected prior to 1999-2000.
	Net farm income is defined as the return to the principal farmer and spouse for their manual and managerial labour and on the tenant type capital of the business. It excludes all income arising from outside the farm business.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			   Average net farm incomes (£/farm) in Cornwall( 1) 
			  March/February years ( 2) Dairy farms  Livestock farms 
			 1980-81 7,500 4,000 
			 1981-82 11,100 8,500 
			 1982-83 11,200 9,400 
			 1983-84 6,500 5,900 
			 1984-85 5,000 4,500 
			 1985-86 13,200 7,500 
			 1986-87 11,900 6,600 
			 1987-88 17,000 14,700 
			 1988-89 23,700 18,200 
			 1989-90 17,200 11,300 
			 1990-91 13,800 9,500 
			 1991-92 16,700 12,200 
			 1992-93 21,500 17,100 
			 1993-94 29,200 21,300 
			 1994-95 19,600 14,300 
			 1995-96 23,900 21,300 
			 1996-97 15,400 8,700 
			 1997-98 10,800 2,700 
			 1998-99 1,100 -500 
			 1999-2000 n/a -200 
			 2000-01 14,300 3,500 
			 2001-02 35,900 18,100 
			 2002-03 25,600 17,100 
			 2003-04 27,000 17,700 
			 2004-05 n/a 12,100 
			 2005-06 n/a 12,800 
			 n/a = data not available, too few farms in sample (1) Minimum size threshold for inclusion in the FBS was as follows: 1980-81 to 1991-92—4 BSU (British Size Units) (1 BSU = 2,000 European Currency Units (now known as euros) of standard gross margin) 1992-93 to 1995-96—8 ESU (European Size Units) (1 ESU = 1,200 European Currency Units (now known as euros) of standard gross margin) 1996-97 onwards—0.5 SLR (Standard Labour Requirement) (2 )These farms are a subset of livestock farms  Source:  Farm Business Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 
			   Average net farm incomes (£/farm) in South West ( 1) 
			  March/February years ( 2) Dairy farms  Cropping farms ( 3) Horticulture farms  Livestock farms  Organic farms 
			 1980-81 10,400 n/a n/a 8,100 — 
			 1981-82 14,200 21,800 n/a 11,700 — 
			 1982-83 16,400 12,900 4,400 10,000 — 
			 1983-84 8,300 25,100 n/a 6,700 — 
			 1984-85 8,200 24,500 n/a 6,900 — 
			 1985-86 14,500 2,600 3,800 10,400 — 
			 1986-87 13,900 14,100 n/a 9,100 — 
			 1987-88 23,300 10,100 n/a 17,800 — 
			 1988-89 31,200 6,700 13,000 22,500 — 
			 1989-90 26,100 6,200 11,600 17,400 — 
			 1990-91 27,300 24,700 14,900 19,500 — 
			 1991-92 32,400 19,600 13,300 22,300 — 
			 1992-93 29,400 19,100 14,900 19,600 — 
			 1993-94 21,700 15,300 26,600 15,100 — 
			 1994-95 19,300 8,800 16,100 12,600 — 
			 1995-96 33,000 41,400 29,700 26,800 — 
			 1996-97 25,300 28,300 15,900 20,300 — 
			 1997-98 17,800 15,900 18,200 12,000 — 
			 1998-99 10,400 7,500 25,000 7,600 — 
			 1999-2000 7,900 13,800 35,700 5,400 n/a 
			 2000-01 11,300 8,700 27,000 5,100 n/a 
			 2001-02 27,900 11,200 32,800 16,800 n/a 
			 2002-03 19,500 16,500 29,000 14,400 11,400 
			 2003-04 27,100 29,200 37,600 17,700 19,600 
			 2004-05 31,000 17,300 21,700 17,100 19,100 
			 2005-06 30,800 20,900 26,300 17,400 n/a 
			 n/a = data not available, too few farms in sample (1) Minimum size threshold for inclusion in the FBS was as follows: 1980-81 to 1991-92—4 BSU (British Size Units) (1 BSU = 2,000 European Currency Units (now known as euros) of standard gross margin) 1992-93 to 1995-96—8 ESU (European Size Units) (1 ESU = 1200 European Currency Units (now known as euros) of standard gross margin) 1996-97 onwards—0.5 SLR (Standard Labour Requirement) (2) These farms are a subset of livestock farms (3 )These farms are a subset of cropping farms  Source:  Farm Business Survey

Agriculture

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what area of land was used by each farming sector in Cornwall in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: The total area on registered holdings in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly at June each year from 1981 to 2005 can be found in the following tables. Data for 1979 and 1980 are not available at this level. Figures for 2006 will be available later in the month.
	 Source:
	June Agricultural Census and June Agricultural Survey.
	
		
			  Total area (hectares) of registered holdings in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 1981 to 2005 by predominant farm type 
			   Cropping  Horticulture  Pigs and poultry  Dairy  Cattle and sheep (LFA)  Cattle and sheep (Lowland)  Unclassified  Total 
			 1981 48,620 5,932 5,762 107,022 13,979 90,866 7,798 279,979 
			 1982 49,328 5,741 6,815 105,732 13,668 90,524 7,759 279,567 
			 1983 47,444 5,593 6,087 106,623 12,976 92,636 7,551 278,910 
			 1984 44,381 3,497 4,309 107,325 12,631 98,936 8,450 279,529 
			 1985 47,140 3,775 4,408 103,208 12,634 99,521 8,741 279,427 
			 1986 47,432 4,171 4,409 103,311 12,614 97,551 10,046 279,534 
		
	
	
		
			   Cereals  General cropping  Horticulture  Pigs and poultry  Dairy  Cattle and sheep (LFA)  Cattle and sheep (Lowland)  Mixed  Other  Total 
			 1987 13,808 16,428 4,412 1,555 96,153 29,531 56,918 47,226 12,283 278,314 
			 1988 14,272 16,637 4,718 1,532 92,092 29,238 58,822 47,711 13,458 278,479 
			 1989 13,738 15,607 4,772 1,563 90,426 30,724 63,671 43,294 13,955 277,750 
			 1990 12,239 14,766 4,958 1,458 90,300 29,608 65,541 41,835 15,077 275,783 
			 1991 14,483 15,252 4,717 1,597 88,983 30,383 65,555 40,478 16,732 278,182 
			 1992 13,081 15,955 4,884 1,367 84,921 29,991 66,657 43,135 17,906 277,897 
			 1993 13,578 16,230 4,885 1,236 75,089 32,166 75,926 42,442 18,342 279,894 
			 1994 12,742 17,333 5,335 1,482 86,574 29,383 67,835 38,258 18,587 277,529 
			 1995 16,113 16,145 5,438 1,537 83,678 29,429 64,359 41,915 17,429 276,045 
			 1996 18,792 16,334 4,270 1,523 82,345 27,356 64,738 41,517 17,896 274,771 
			 1997 20,128 16,020 5,636 1,822 78,990 23,930 67,596 42,078 15,995 272,195 
			 1998 21,212 15,705 5,569 1,929 75,602 22,188 67,476 42,563 16,659 268,904 
			 1999 24,166 15,835 5,642 1,842 72,639 22,667 67,196 42,473 16,870 269,331 
			 2000 20,748 14,853 6,062 1,301 74,239 22,815 67,982 41,057 16,481 265,538 
		
	
	
		
			   Cereals  General cropping  Horticulture  Specialist pigs  Specialist poultry  Dairy  Grazing livestock  ( LFA )  Grazing livestock  ( Lowland )  Mixed  Other  Total 
			 2001 25,236 16,922 6,700 481 990 77,504 26,439 57,388 51,128 17,175 279,962 
			 2002 20,765 17,086 7,082 384 857 74,084 25,278 55,664 46,064 17,592 264,855 
			 2003 21,619 17,668 7,057 401 896 73,404 26,789 58,906 47,522 18,642 272,905 
			 2004 21,602 20,326 8,018 402 1,011 73,582 26,776 60,212 48,145 21,309 281,381 
			 2005 24,945 20,927 7,837 436 1,442 69,952 26,768 63,119 44,140 24,279 283,845 
			  Notes: 1. There have been changes in the farm type classifications therefore comparison over time is not possible for some categories. 2. In the years 1981 to 1986, some data for the Isles of Scilly was suppressed for confidentiality reasons. These data are not included in the figures. 3. Prior to 2000, minor holdings are not included in the figures. From 2000 onwards, all holdings are included. A minor holding has to meet all the following conditions: (a) have a total area of less than six hectares (b) a labour requirement of less than 100 standard person days (c) no regular full-time farmer or worker. (d) a glasshouse area of less than 100 square metres (e) the occupier does not farm another holding. 4. The introduction of the Single Payment Scheme in 2005 has lead to an increase in the number of registered holdings.  Source: June Agricultural Survey and June Agricultural Census.

Agriculture

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farm holdings there were in each sector of farming in Cornwall in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: The number of registered holdings in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly at June each year from 1981 to 2005 can be found in the following table. Data for 1979 and 1980 are not available at this level. Figures for 2006 will be available later in the month.
	
		
			  Registered holdings in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 1981 to 2005 by predominant farm type 
			   Cropping  Horticulture  Pigs and poultry  Dairy  Cattle and sheep (LFA)  Cattle and sheep (L owland)  Unclassified  Total 
			 1981 767 559 475 2,148 181 2,538 761 7,429 
			 1982 772 548 543 2,117 176 2,527 803 7,486 
			 1983 722 514 416 2,081 175 2,845 744 7,497 
			 1984 791 400 322 2,068 162 2,637 739 7,119 
			 1985 822 444 344 1,982 170 2,651 830 7,243 
			 1986 801 369 355 1,942 175 2,636 921 7,199 
		
	
	
		
			   Cereals  Genera l  cropping  Horticulture  Pigs and poultry  Dairy  Cattle and sheep (LFA)  Cattle and sheep ( L owland)  Mixed  Other  Total 
			 1987 228 320 462 249 1,782 707 1,746 716 1,116 7,326 
			 1988 226 321 481 235 1,672 720 1,828 700 1,294 7,477 
			 1989 233 306 473 235 1,616 711 1,960 641 1,416 7,591 
			 1990 200 274 460 171 1,567 661 1,908 590 1,260 7,091 
			 1991 225 264 446 173 1,533 651 1,910 580 1,343 7,125 
			 1992 199 268 448 157 1,427 635 1,935 598 1,367 7,034 
			 1993 202 267 437 147 1,280 648 2,087 601 1,413 7,082 
			 1994 199 265 425 144 1,391 609 2,023 535 1,477 7,068 
			 1995 243 251 397 135 1,318 587 1,905 566 1,277 6,679 
			 1996 277 271 380 143 1,260 543 1,941 562 1,346 6,723 
			 1997 300 223 403 170 1,194 502 1,957 584 1,400 6,733 
			 1998 313 233 395 178 1,136 475 1,938 577 1,458 6,703 
			 1999 328 214 375 174 1,047 479 2,005 557 1,451 6,630 
			 2000 312 176 505 224 1,026 458 2,016 580 2,690 7,987 
		
	
	
		
			   Cereals  General cropping  Horticulture  Specialist pigs  Specialist poultry  Dairy  Grazing livestock LFA  Grazing livestock lowland  Mixed  Other  Total 
			 2001 321 199 521 57 184 1,000 471 1,787 832 3,021 8,393 
			 2002 308 207 536 60 203 971 476 1,826 855 3,400 8,842 
			 2003 323 201 503 61 209 922 460 1,895 839 3,543 8,956 
			 2004 328 228 531 63 215 895 508 1,997 689 3,543 8,997 
			 2005 328 226 544 71 278 861 508 1,955 685 3,610 9,066 
			  Notes: 1. There have been changes in the farm type classifications therefore comparison over time is not possible for some categories. 2. In the years 1981 to 1986 some data for the Isles of Scilly were suppressed for confidentiality reasons. These data are not included in the figures. 3. Prior to 2000 minor holdings are not included in the figures. From 2000 onwards all holdings are included. A minor holding has to meet all the following conditions: (a) have a total area of less than six hectares; (b) a labour requirement of less than 100 standard person days; (c) no regular full-time farmer or worker; (d) a glasshouse area of less than 100 square metres; (e) the occupier does not farm another holding. 4. The introduction of the single payment scheme in 2005 has lead to an increase in the number of registered holdings.  Source: June agricultural Survey and June Agricultural Census

Animal Welfare: Convictions

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with police forces in England and Wales on establishing a central database for people convicted of animal welfare crimes.

Jonathan R Shaw: There have been no discussions between DEFRA and police forces in England and Wales on this issue. Data about people convicted of cruelty to animals are already stored in centrally held criminal records.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will press for action to be taken under the Berne Convention against countries where control of badgers is undertaken by methods banned under that convention.

Jonathan R Shaw: Badgers ( Meles, meles) are listed as a protected species under appendix III of the Berne Convention, but they are not an endangered species. The Berne Convention provides for exceptions to be made so as to allow the use of means and methods of killing prohibited under appendix IV, subject to certain conditions. I am not aware that any country is breaching the Berne Convention with respect to badger control.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has evaluated on the proactive culling of badgers in Ireland in response to bovine tuberculosis; and what assessment he has made of the possible application of this policy to the UK.

Jonathan R Shaw: We have reviewed the published findings of the Irish Four Areas badger culling trial (which were published in Preventative Veterinary Medicine in January 2005), as well as advice from independent scientists on whether the findings of the Irish research can be applied to the situation in England. The experience in the Republic of Ireland is not directly transferable to England because the badger population, farming practices and general environment are all very different. As a result, while we can learn from the Republic of Ireland's experiences, directly applying such a policy here is not possible.
	The independent advice, together with a statement from DEFRA's chief scientific adviser, was published on the DEFRA website in March 2005 and can be found in the news archive at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/tb/newsarchive.htm

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the Irish Government on a vaccination strategy to reduce the incidence of bovine tuberculosis.

Jonathan R Shaw: DEFRA officials have visited Ireland several times to discuss the UK and Irish work programmes and areas of potential future collaboration, particularly regarding the design of badger field studies and licensing requirements for Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG). The Veterinary Laboratories Agency also has active research links with Irish researchers.

Milk Production

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the volume of milk production was in  (a) Cornwall,  (b) the South West and  (c) England in each year for which figures are available.

Jonathan R Shaw: Precise estimates of milk production in these regions are not readily available. However, the following table provides estimates of the volume of milk produced in Cornwall, the South West and England for the years 1979 to 2006 calculated by applying the average UK milk yield to the number of dairy cows in each region.
	
		
			  Milk production (million litres) 
			   Cornwall and Isles of Scilly  South West region  England 
			 1979 509 3,648 10,979 
			 1980 519 3,698 10,970 
			 1981 516 3,683 10,793 
			 1982 557 3,904 11,396 
			 1983 581 4,041 11,765 
			 1984 555 3,813 11,043 
			 1985 545 3,751 10,797 
			 1986 563 3,827 10,983 
			 1987 540 3,665 10,439 
			 1988 524 3,584 10,184 
			 1989 517 3,546 10,038 
			 1990 531 3,630 10,290 
			 1991 517 3,503 9,940 
			 1992 517 3,461 9,800 
			 1993 515 3,474 9,790 
			 1994 531 3,598 10,054 
			 1995 521 3,506 9,766 
			 1996 526 3,515 9,889 
			 1997 530 3,503 9,840 
			 1998 508 3,356 9,484 
			 1999 535 3,516 9,896 
			 2000 513 3,332 9,418 
			 2001 555 3,448 9,457 
			 2002 536 3,424 9,495 
			 2003 539 3,428 9,500 
			 2004 520 3,267 9,055 
			 2005 501 3,196 8,886 
			 2006 503 3,157 8,775

Departments: Racial Harassment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which his Department is responsible have been  (a) investigated and  (b) upheld in the last 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: During the last 12 months (for the period July 2006 to July 2007) there have been no complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which this Department is responsible that have been either investigated or upheld.
	The Department has an internal intranet site which details the departmental policy on bullying and harassment. The site also details further information and the procedures for dealing with complaints of bullying and harassment together with details of local contacts and support advisers who can give help and advice to staff.

Departments: Regulation

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what progress his Department has made towards meeting its target of making a 25 per cent. reduction in administrative burdens on business by the end of 2009;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to business of administrative burdens imposed by regulations from his Department in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what progress has been made by his Department towards its target of 25 per cent. reduction in administrative burdens on business by the end of 2009; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what estimate he has made of the cost to business of administrative burdens and regulations from his Department in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The total administrative burden from the 362 DEFRA regulations which, as of May 2005 imposed such a burden, was assessed to be £527.8 million per annum. This represents the Department's administrative burden baseline. In our Simplification Plan "Maximising Outcomes, Minimising Burdens", which was published in December 2006 and is available from the Library, administrative reductions of around £159 million were identified. This represents a reduction of 30 per cent. on the baseline. Progress since then will be reported in our 2007 plan which is due for publication in the autumn. However, the Department is progressing well toward meeting its net administrative burden reduction target of 25 per cent. by 2010.
	The cross-Government administrative burden measurement exercise, which identified the baseline administrative burden, was carried out by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) on behalf of the Cabinet Office. The exercise used an internationally agreed model, recommended to the Government by business. As the first UK Government to take this radical approach to managing the regulatory burden, there are no comparable data before 2005 when the exercise was carried out.

Energy: Radio

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what comparative analysis he has made of the power consumed by listening to the radio using  (a) a traditional analogue set powered by the mains,  (b) a digital radio powered by the mains and  (c) via a television receiving digital radio through a set-top box receiver; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ruddock: The Government's Market Transformation Programme (MTP) has tested a limited number of digital radios. The average energy needed to operate by those radios tested was around 8.5 watts. A typical traditional analogue radio requires 2 watts.
	The Energy Saving Trust (EST) recently tested four televisions to estimate the energy consumed by listening to digital radio via a television and set-top box receiver. These tests indicated that listening to digital radio in this way required between 60 and 183 watts. The actual energy used varied according to the type of television, the screen size and whether the screen was on or the display was black. Black screen display is only available for BBC radio channels.
	'Screen blanking', which allows the selected radio station to be received in audio only, can reduce the energy consumption to around 25 watts. Although not yet widely available, we expect this technology to become more common in the near future.

Farms: Income

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average farm income was in  (a) Cornwall,  (b) the south west and  (c) England of farms of size (i) less than 5 ha, (ii) 5 to 20 ha, (iii) 20 to 50 ha, (iv) 50 to 100 ha and (v) more than 100 ha in each year since 1979.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following tables show average net farm income per farm in  (a) Cornwall  (b) the South West Government Office Region and  (c) in England of farms of size (i) less than 5 ha, (ii) 5 to 20 ha, (iii) 20 to 50 ha, (iv) 50 to 100 ha and (v) more than 100 ha in each year since 1980. Data are not available on a comparable basis for 1979.
	
		
			  Table 1: Cornwall 
			   Cornwall: average net farm income per farm (£/farm)( 1) 
			  March/February years  Less than 5 ha  5 < 20 ha  20 < 50 ha  50 < 100 ha  100 ha and over 
			 1980-81 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 1981-82 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 1982-83 n/a n/a n/a 11,500 12,900 
			 1983-84 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 1984-85 n/a n/a n/a 7,100 n/a 
			 1985-86 n/a n/a n/a 10,400 18,700 
			 1986-87 n/a n/a n/a 5,500 8,100 
			 1987-88 n/a n/a n/a 18,800 12,100 
			 1988-89 n/a n/a n/a 22,900 9,500 
			 1989-90 n/a n/a n/a 11,000 7,000 
			 1990-91 n/a n/a n/a 7,600 5,400 
			 1991-92 n/a n/a n/a 9,100 4,400 
			 1992-93 n/a n/a n/a 15,200 13,900 
			 1993-94 n/a n/a n/a 20,300 27,700 
			 1994-95 n/a n/a n/a 16,100 13,900 
			 1995-96 n/a n/a n/a 19,500 27,200 
			 1996-97 n/a n/a n/a 9,000 16,300 
			 1997-98 n/a n/a n/a -900 n/a 
			 1998-99 n/a n/a n/a 100 -3,100 
			 1999-2000 n/a n/a n/a 200 6,600 
			 2000-01 n/a n/a n/a -100 6,800 
			 2001-02 n/a n/a n/a 9,300 36,000 
			 2002-03 n/a n/a n/a 13,100 22,600 
			 2003-04 n/a n/a n/a 13,300 25,600 
			 2004-05 n/a n/a n/a 13,900 24,100 
			 2005-06 n/a n/a n/a n/a 21,100 
			 n/a = Data not available, too few farms in sample. (1) Minimum size threshold for inclusion in the FBS was as follows: 1980-81 to 1991-92—4 BSU (British Size Units) (1 BSU = 2000 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1992-93 to 1995-96—8 ESU (European Size Units) (1 ESU = 1200 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1996-97 onwards—0.5 SLR (Standard Labour Requirement)  Source: Farm Business Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Government Office Region South West 
			   GOR South West: average net farm income per farm (£/farm)( 1) 
			  March/February years  Less than 5 ha  5 < 20 ha  20 < 50 ha  50 < 100 ha  100 ha and over 
			 1980-81 n/a n/a 5,500 8,600 14,000 
			 1981-82 n/a n/a 8,300 13,800 18,200 
			 1982-83 5,400 1,800 6,200 11,800 23,800 
			 1983-84 n/a n/a 4,500 7,500 20,300 
			 1984-85 n/a n/a 4,900 6,900 23,300 
			 1985-86 n/a 7,300 5,800 8,700 14,900 
			 1986-87 n/a n/a 4,800 9,200 15,500 
			 1987-88 n/a n/a 12,100 14,900 21,600 
			 1988-89 11,200 n/a 12,200 20,800 26,400 
			 1989-90 20,300 n/a 9,900 14,000 19,200 
			 1990-91 17,500 n/a 7,500 11,900 16,200 
			 1991-92 31,700 n/a 9,800 11,700 25,300 
			 1992-93 14,200 n/a 12,400 17,000 32,100 
			 1993-94 14,700 n/a 12,900 17,100 38,600 
			 1994-95 17,900 n/a 11,500 17,900 39,300 
			 1995-96 30,900 n/a 14,200 24,300 52,500 
			 1996-97 19,100 n/a 8,200 17,800 40,900 
			 1997-98 18,100 n/a 6,300 7,500 20,200 
			 1998-99 18,400 n/a 5,900 4,600 7,700 
			 1999-2000 31,900 17,100 2,900 5,300 11,900 
			 2000-01 42,300 n/a 800 4,100 9,700 
			 2001-02 34,400 n/a 9,300 10,900 19,900 
			 2002-03 32,800 n/a 8,800 11,800 18,300 
			 2003-04 35,400 n/a 10,000 14,500 30,600 
			 2004-05 22,100 n/a 6,800 15,100 25,300 
			 2005-06 22,600 n/a 5,400 17,600 24,200 
			 n/a = Data not available, too few farms in sample. (1) Minimum size threshold for inclusion in the FBS was as follows: 1980-81 to 1991-92—4 BSU (British Size Units) (1 BSU = 2000 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1992-93 to 1995-96—8 ESU (European Size Units) (1 ESU = 1200 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1996-97 onwards—0.5 SLR (Standard Labour Requirement)  Source: Farm Business Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: England 
			   England: average net farm income per farm (£/farm)( 1) 
			  March/February years  Less than 5 ha  5 < 20 ha  20 < 50 ha  50 < 100 ha  100 ha and over 
			 1980-81 n/a n/a 5,700 8,200 15,600 
			 1981-82 n/a 9,200 7,700 12,200 21,900 
			 1982-83 5,200 2,300 6,300 11,800 27,500 
			 1983-84 n/a 2,700 6,300 9,200 25,300 
			 1984-85 n/a 1,500 6,300 9,700 24,600 
			 1985-86 13,600 5,400 4,600 6,800 12,900 
			 1986-87 16,800 4,000 7,200 9,700 20,300 
			 1987-88 22,600 17,100 8,700 10,800 15,100 
			 1988-89 12,800 14,600 9,200 12,500 19,500 
			 1989-90 25,800 12,900 10,700 13,600 28,400 
			 1990-91 26,600 22,900 7,100 10,700 26,900 
			 1991-92 19,600 20,400 8,300 12,400 30,500 
			 1992-93 13,700 8,700 10,300 16,300 39,000 
			 1993-94 14,200 16,800 9,300 17,700 41,900 
			 1994-95 22,300 20,600 11,000 19,900 51,600 
			 1995-96 31,500 22,700 15,700 24,800 70,900 
			 1996-97 28,800 32,500 10,000 19,800 52,200 
			 1997-98 22,800 9,500 6,300 9,800 23,100 
			 1998-99 18,000 4,400 3,900 7,300 18,200 
			 1999-2000 17,400 10,700 3,600 5,800 12,100 
			 2000-01 25,700 28,600 4,400 6,100 13,800 
			 2001-02 27,000 28,800 11,200 10,100 17,400 
			 2002-03 40,500 27,100 10,200 10,200 19,300 
			 2003-04 35,500 40,000 10,700 14,800 46,600 
			 2004-05 42,500 21,200 10,700 12,600 28,900 
			 2005-06 49,900 26,700 10,600 13,400 26,300 
			 n/a = Data not available, too few farms in sample. (1) Minimum size threshold for inclusion in the FBS was as follows: 1980-81 to 1991-92—4 BSU (British Size Units) (1 BSU = 2000 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1992-93 to 1995-96—8 ESU (European Size Units) (1 ESU = 1200 European Currency Units (now known as Euros) of Standard Gross Margin) 1996-97 onwards—0.5 SLR (Standard Labour Requirement)  Source: Farm Business Survey 
		
	
	Net farm income is defined as the return to the principal farmer and spouse for their manual and managerial labour and on the tenant type capital of the business. It excludes all income arising from outside the farm business.

Fisheries

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of levels of fish stocks in UK waters.

Jonathan R Shaw: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 19 June 2007,  Official Report, columns 1662-63W.

Fisheries: Quotas

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent estimates his Department has made of illegal fishing volumes  (a) inland and  (b) at sea; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: By its very nature illegal fishing is clandestine and so it is extremely difficult to make an accurate estimate of the levels of illegal fishing activities. We therefore use the level of prosecutions as a proxy for the level of illegal activity. Data below relates to inland and sea fisheries in England and Wales.
	For inland Fisheries, the National Enforcement Database holds information that relates to offences where nets, snares, traps and spears have been used and where unauthorised fishing and failing to return fish has taken place. It predominantly records cases where serious poaching has occurred, which can result in imprisonment.
	The following table shows the total number of fisheries convictions per year 2002-06.
	
		
			   Convictions 
			 2002 46 
			 2003 31 
			 2004 25 
			 2005 70 
			 2006 39 
			  Source:  National Enforcement Database 
		
	
	The total number of convictions under the Sea Fisheries Regulations Act 1966 are as follows.
	
		
			   Convictions 
			 2002 0 
			 2003 0 
			 2004 4 
			 2005 3 
			 2006 10 
			  Source:  National Enforcement Database 
		
	
	The following table shows the total number of convictions where people have been found to be fishing without a rod licence. This type of conviction holds a maximum fine of £2,500. The Fisheries Offence Prosecution System records cases involving salmon, trout, freshwater fish and eels. It does not include convictions for salt water related cases.
	
		
			   Convictions 
			 2003-04 3,651 
			 2004-05 4,099 
			 2005-06 4,939 
			 2006-07 4,209 
			  Source:  Fisheries Offence Prosecution System 
		
	
	At sea, the total numbers of sea fisheries offences detected in England and Wales per year resulting in convictions are set out as follows:
	
		
			   Convictions 
			 2000 131 
			 2001 103 
			 2002 84 
			 2003 112 
			 2004 73 
			 2005 69 
			 2006 88 
			  Note:  The above table refers to the year in which the offences were detected. Convictions may occur in the same or following years.  Source:  Marine and Fisheries Agency—UK Fisheries Monitoring, Control and Surveillance System. 
		
	
	At the international level, with the caveat that estimates are based on a few case studies, recent UK funded work has reported that fish to the value of $4 billion US to $9 billion US are caught illegally worldwide every year. The UK is one of the countries in the international arena leading the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, following the recommendations of the 2006 High Seas Task Force report, "Closing the Net". Together with international partners we have made progress on key projects aimed at exposing illegal activities, deterring them and improving enforcement action against those responsible.

Floods: Shropshire

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures have been put in place to assist those affected by floods in Shifnal in Shropshire.

John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
	The package of immediate support for flood hit areas announced by the Prime Minister on 7 July included a fund of £10 million to local authorities to support the work being done to help recovery for those hardest hit. On 13 July I approved a series of initial Flood Recovery Grant payments to 34 flood hit local authorities to help those in greatest and most immediate need get back on their feet.
	On the basis of the relative number of households affected (based on the available information at the time) £50,000 was awarded to Bridgnorth district council in Shropshire. It is up to Bridgnorth district council to spend the money how they wish in line with local priorities and to decide what measures should be put in place to assist those affected in places such as Shifnal.
	The £10 million is additional money to any resources provided under the Bellwin scheme which Bridgnorth district council may be in a position to apply for.

Paté de Fois Gras

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will bring forward proposals to ban the sale of foie gras.

Jonathan R Shaw: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell) on 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 83W.

Pet Shops

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he proposes to bring forward regulations to ban the sale of puppies and kittens through pet shops.

Jonathan R Shaw: DEFRA does not propose to ban the sale of puppies and kittens through pet shops. However, new regulations on pet vending will be introduced under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. We are considering a number of changes to improve the welfare of all animals sold through pet shops. All proposals will be subject to public consultation and parliamentary approval.

Sheep: Electronic Tagging

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost to the farming industry of implementing the sheep double tagging regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Department's regulatory impact assessment (RIA), produced in 2005 to assess the options available for implementing European Union Council Regulation 21/2004, identified that implementation of the double tagging requirements would actually be cheaper than maintaining the national arrangements in place at the time. A revised RIA is being prepared to assess present day costs, but the 2005 estimates indicated there would be an annual saving to the industry in the order of around £2.8 million a year if double tagging, as provided for by the regulation, was introduced. Double tagging was not introduced at the time because of traceability issues and because it was not supported by industry.

Sheep: Electronic Tagging

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reasons he decided to withdraw the application to the European Commission for the extension to sheep double tagging derogation; what advice he received on this course of action; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The European Union's Food and Veterinary Office report on the latest mission was uncompromising. It identified that compliance with the derogated rules on sheep identification and movement reporting by the industry remained inadequate. The European Commission made it very clear that they would not propose an extension to the UK derogation from double tagging. With the agreement of sheep industry stakeholders, the application for the derogation was withdrawn. Not to have done so might have compromised the outcome of forthcoming negotiations on the electronic identification of sheep.

Water Supply

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of long-term future water supply.

Phil Woolas: The Environment Agency is the statutory body with the duty for managing water resources in England and Wales. Its aim is to ensure that the management and future development of our water resources is carried out in a sustainable manner.
	In 2001, the Environment Agency published "Water Resources for the Future—A Strategy for England and Wales". This is a key part of the framework for integrated water resources planning carried out by the Environment Agency and water users, particularly the water companies. The publication considers both national and regional water resource strategies. These strategies set out pressures on water resources and how the Environment Agency expects these to be managed over the next 25 years.
	In addition, all water companies in England and Wales have water resource management plans that describe how each company aims to secure a sustainable supply-demand balance for the public water supply over the next 25 years. Under the provisions of the Water Act 2003 these plans became mandatory from 1 April 2007 and for the first time they will be subject to public consultation.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Biometrics

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent tests her Department has carried out on the effectiveness of biometric  (a) fingerprints,  (b) iris scan and  (c) facial identification systems.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 16 July 2007
	The Biometrics Centre of Expertise (BCE) was created two years ago and is a part of the Home Office Scientific Development Branch (HOSDB). Its work includes following developments in fingerprint, iris and face recognition technologies. The BCE provide advice to Government Departments (such as UKVisas, Border and Immigration Agency (including eBorders), IPS) running biometric programmes, several of which have included testing as part of the procurement and implementation phases.
	The BCE also maintain strong relationships with academia, industry and foreign governments which have conducted biometric testing. The BCE have not specifically commissioned biometric testing in relation to fingerprint, iris or face recognition however, the team has part funded the MTIT (Minutiae Template Interoperability Testing) project—a European project under the Sixth Framework programme (STREP)—which had a substantial testing component.
	In policing, the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) took over responsibility from PITO for the IDENT1 national finger and palm print system for the UK police service from 1 April 2007. As part of the supplier selection process for IDENT1 in 2004, PITO undertook extensive operational accuracy benchmarks of the two shortlisted suppliers' proposals. As a result of those tests, the NPIA is able to give assurance to the police service that IDENT1 search accuracy represents the state of the art for large scale biometric systems, in a law enforcement environment, and that it is fully capable of meeting the police requirements for both forensic identification and for the ongoing identity management of offenders, based on their fingerprints.
	The matching performance of IDENT1 is routinely monitored and assessed by Northrop Grumman (the system integrator responsible for delivering the service) to ensure that it continues to meet the operational requirements of the UK police service.
	The NPIA has undertaken no tests recently on iris or face, but are evaluating the potential for face recognition technologies for policing and plan to undertake some tests shortly.

Bournemouth

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she next expects to visit Bournemouth on official business.

Liam Byrne: I have no current plans to visit Bournemouth.

Children: Internet

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) internet service providers,  (b) social networking sites and  (c) other IT companies have adapted the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre's report abuse mechanism.

Vernon Coaker: The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre, which was launched in April 2006, works across the UK and maximises international links to deliver a holistic approach to tackling child sex abuse wherever and whenever it happens, in particular, from those who use the internet and other new technologies in the sexual exploitation of children. It combines police powers with the dedicated expertise of business sectors, government, specialist charities and other interested organisations.
	CEOP Centre's report abuse mechanism allows members of the public to report potentially illegal activity (such as allegations of sexual grooming) direct to law enforcement. To date, over 750,000 children across the UK have been educated on how to use this reporting mechanism. The Home Secretary's Task Force has set up a working group which includes representatives from social network providers, CEOP and children's charities, to look at the range of safety issues for children caused by the development and growth of social networking sites and develop good practice guidelines. We hope to publish this soon. One of the key areas under discussion is the means by which the public can make reports about potentially illegal activity to CEOP when they are online. One of the largest providers of Instant Messaging (IM) services in the UK has embedded the report abuse mechanism into its IM.

Electronic Surveillance: Admissibility of Evidence

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether intercept evidence obtained by British security services is, in any circumstances, available and admissible as court evidence in foreign jurisdictions.

Tony McNulty: The statutory prohibition on the use of intercept as evidence applies to all warranted interception undertaken on behalf of any UK intercepting agency, including the security service. However, under the EU Mutual Legal Assistance Convention arrangements, an EU member state can request the UK to undertake interception on behalf of one of its law enforcement agencies. This would be subject to restrictions imposed by the Secretary of State which can stipulate, amongst other things, that the material is not used in evidence.

Entry Clearances

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the independent monitor's report into the issuing of tourist visas for visitors to the UK.

Kim Howells: I have been asked to reply.
	UKvisas' detailed responses to the specific recommendations made by the Independent Monitor in her 2006 report can be accessed on the UKvisas website at:
	www.ukvisas.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1006977150169.
	The responses are available under the "Table of Comments by UKvisas in Response to the Independent Monitor's Report 2006".

Insurance: Motor Vehicles

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with the police about the accuracy of information provided to them by the Motor Insurers Bureau on uninsured drivers; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 17 July 2007
	The police make extensive use of the Motor Insurance Database (MID) to help identify vehicles being driven uninsured and seize around 1,500 vehicles a week. We are aware of very few cases where it has been alleged that inaccurate data have led to an unjustified seizure and the police inform us that such occurrences are very rare.
	The Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) makes information available to the police via the MID.
	The accuracy of the MID is solely the responsibility of the insurance industry. It is for the police to decide in any individual case if they believe the information they obtain from the MID is sufficient to give them reasonable grounds for believing that a vehicle is being driven without appropriate insurance. In cases of doubt the MIB also provides a dedicated police helpline. Any challenge to the police seizure would be a matter for the courts.

Insurance: Motor Vehicles

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance she gives to the police about seizing uninsured cars; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 17 July 2007
	The police seize vehicles driven by a person without appropriate insurance under section 165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The addition of this provision to the 1988 Act was one of a number of roads policing measures included in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005. Information on all these measures and the powers they confer was given to chief officers of police at the time and has been supplemented subsequently by responses to individual inquiries. How the powers are exercised is an operational matter for individual chief officers and any guidance that might be issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers.

Local Authorities: Terrorism

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions she has had with local authorities about civil contingencies and emergency planning in the event of a  (a) nuclear,  (b) biological and  (c) chemical or dirty bomb detonating in the United Kingdom.

Tony McNulty: The Home Office has no direct responsibility for local authority emergency planning; however, given their important role in civil contingency planning and preparation at a local level, local authorities are represented throughout the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Resilience Programme governance structure. Home Office officials therefore have regular discussions with local authority representatives on a wide range of issues relating to contingency planning for the possible use by terrorists of CBRN materials.

Mujahedin-e Khalq: Disclosure of Information

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will publish the information produced in camera for the hearing to discuss whether the People's Mujahedin of Iran should be de-proscribed.

Tony McNulty: The Proscribed Organisation Appeals Committee (POAC) sits in public save when considering material the disclosure of which is contrary to the public interest. The closed session with a special advocate representing the interests of the appellants enables POAC to consider material that would be the subject of public interest immunity in ordinary High Court proceedings. The special advocate sees the sensitive material and can make submissions upon it. In respect of the closed material deployed before it, POAC itself decides, in the light of argument from the special advocate, whether the Secretary of State's claim to maintain its confidentiality should be accepted. We will not therefore be publishing any of the closed material that will be heard before POAC.

Police: Driving Under Influence

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer by the Secretary of State for Wales of 5 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1187W, on police: driving under influence, if she will introduce a central record of the number of police officers in Wales prosecuted, disciplined or dismissed for drink-driving offences.

Tony McNulty: We have no plans to introduce such a central record. Police disciplinary action, whether in relation to drink driving or other misconduct, is a matter for individual chief officers.

Pornography: Children

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding has been made available to  (a) Sussex Police and  (b) all police forces in England and Wales to deal with computer-based child pornography in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: Government funding for police authorities is chiefly allocated using a funding formula that provides an assessment of the relative need of each police force in England and Wales.
	Funding to combat computer-based images of child abuse is not separately identified. Decisions on the distribution of resources are matters for the chief officer and the police authority.

Racial Violence

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many xenophobic crimes there were in  (a) Southampton,  (b) Hampshire and  (c) England in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested is not collected centrally in the recorded crime statistics. The crime statistics have data for racially or religiously aggravated offences as defined by statute but those specifically of a xenophobic nature cannot be separately identified.

Sexual Offences: Internet

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will take steps to require social networking sites  (a) to cross-check new members against registered sex offenders' lists and  (b) to prevent registered sex offenders from signing up for services.

Vernon Coaker: Access to information about the personal details and whereabouts of registered sex offenders is restricted to law enforcement agencies. The police do have the power to disclose information about sex offenders to the public in appropriate circumstances. However, we do not intend to make this information routinely available to internet service providers or other persons or organisations not concerned with law enforcement.
	The Review of the Protection of Children from Sex Offenders, published on 13 June, indicated that the Government will take steps to enable sex offenders to be required to register their e-mail addresses with the police. This will provide greater assistance to law enforcement agencies in monitoring offenders' use of information and communication technology.

Sexual Offences: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sex offenders are registered in each police force area in Wales.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 16 July 2007
	 I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her on 9 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1344W.

Sexual Offences: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many registered sex offenders in each police force area in Wales are  (a) not at their registered address and  (b) being searched for by their monitoring team.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 16 July 2007
	 I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her on 9 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1344W.
	In the event of a registered sex offender being recorded as missing, the police will immediately begin efforts to trace that offender.

Sussex Police: Finance

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget is for Sussex police  (a) in 2007-08 and  (b) 2008-09.

Tony McNulty: The budget for Sussex police authority in 2007-08 is £237.1 million, an increase of 4.4 per cent. or £9.9 million over 2006-07.
	We will be announcing details of the police funding settlement for 2008-09 later this year. Sussex police authority will then be in a position to consider its final budget for 2008-09.

Sussex Police: Manpower

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) police officers and  (b) civilian staff have been employed by Sussex police in each of the last 10 years, expressed as  (a) a head count and  (b) as whole time equivalents.

Tony McNulty: The available data for full-time equivalent police officers and police staff are given in the table. Headcount figures for police officers exclude those on long term absence, referred to as officers "available for duty", are available from 2002-03 onwards.
	
		
			  Police officer strength for Sussex police force area as at 31 March 1996 to 31 March 2006 
			  As at 31 March:  Full-time equivalent( 1)  Headcount( 2) 
			 1996 3,074 — 
			 1997 3,085 — 
			 1998 2,996 — 
			 1999 2,847 — 
			 2000 2,822 — 
			 2001 2,855 — 
			 2002 2,893 — 
			 2003 2,989 3,003 
			 2004 3,039 3,145 
			 2005 3,044 3,048 
			 2006 3,092 3,086 
			 (1) Full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. Figures exclude those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. (2) Officers available for duty. Excludes those on long term absence. Data available from 2002-03, following police numbers task force recommendations in 2001. 
		
	
	
		
			  Police staff strength( 1)  for Sussex police force area as at 31 March 1996 to 31 March 2006 
			  As at March:  Full - time equivalent( 2)  Headcount( 4) 
			 1996 1,131 — 
			 1997 1,149 1,250 
			 1998 1,185 1,304 
			 1999 1,393 1,516 
			 2000 1,328 1,430 
			 2001 1,454 1,563 
			 2002 1,507 1,617 
			 2003(3) 1,578 1,706 
			 2004(3) 1,811 1,948 
			 2005(3) 1,950 2,101 
			 2006(3) 1,994 2,157 
			 (1) Civilian staff have been referred to as Police staff since March 2003. Figures exclude Traffic Wardens, Police Community Support Officers and Designated Officers (s.38). (2) Full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. Figures exclude those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. (3) Strength figures as at 31 March 2003 onwards include those staff on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. Therefore these figures are not comparable with those provided for other years in the table. (4) Data not available prior to 1997.

Yarl's Wood Detention Centre: Complaints

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many detainees of Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre were removed from the UK before their civil claims for ill treatment were settled in each of the last three years.

Liam Byrne: The information requested could only be obtained by the detailed examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peace Keeping Operations

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the figures provided by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan for the number of Afghan civilians killed by  (a) Taliban fighters and  (b) NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Des Browne: All casualties are a source of profound regret and ISAF and coalition forces seek at all times to avoid them. The targeting process, weapons selection, doctrine, training and rules of engagement all recognise this. The Taliban show no such concerns when they target civilians indiscriminately with suicide bombs or improvised explosive devices, nor when they deliberately kill innocent civilians such as teachers and local leaders for opposing their views.

Aircraft Carriers

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent representations he has received on the future of the aircraft carrier fleet.

Bob Ainsworth: My right hon. Friend has received no recent representations on the future of the existing aircraft carrier fleet.

Aldershot Barracks: Housing

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions have been held with  (a) Aspire Defence and  (b) Sodhexo Defence on the provision of hot water in non-commissioned officers' living accommodation at Aldershot barracks.

Derek Twigg: Discussions are routinely held with Aspire Defence Limited about the provision of hot water to existing buildings, while major rebuilding work takes place.
	Known faults relating to the provision of plumbing services to the non-commissioned officers' living accommodation in Aldershot are being dealt with promptly by Aspire.
	Sodexho have been sub-contracted by Aspire Defence Services (a sub-contractor of Aspire Defence Limited) to provide retail, catering and cleaning services and have no responsibility for the provision of 'hot water' to non-commissioned officers' living accommodation at Aldershot barracks.

Armed Forces: Desertion

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel were reported as absent without leave in each  (a) month and  (b) year between January 1997 and December 2003.

Bob Ainsworth: The following table shows absence without leave statistics by calendar year between 1997 and 2003:
	
		
			   Navy  RAF  Army 
			 1997 30 15 1,450 
			 1998 30 15 1,850 
			 1999 35 20 2,055 
			 2000 60 25 2,710 
			 2001 95 25 2,650 
			 2002 105 25 2,950 
			 2003 120 35 2,820 
			  Notes:  1 Both the Navy and the Army record AWOL statistics by the number of incidences of AWOL rather than the number of people who have gone AWOL, so there may be a number of people who are represented more than once in these figures.  2 Figures are rounded to the nearest five and are as at 6 July 2007. 
		
	
	Monthly breakdowns of the figures for the Royal Air Force and the Army could be provided only at disproportionate cost. A table showing the number of Royal Navy personnel absent without leave in each month between 1997 and 2003 is as follows:
	
		
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003 
			 January 2 6 1 5 4 8 8 
			 February 1 5 5 8 15 9 4 
			 March 3 4 1 1 5 7 7 
			 April 1 0 2 4 10 8 12 
			 May 1 0 2 5 9 6 11 
			 June 2 2 4 4 7 10 13 
			 July 2 0 8 5 14 11 17 
			 August 1 2 3 1 6 16 10 
			 September 5 2 3 5 6 13 11 
			 October 5 4 4 7 6 14 4 
			 November 4 3 2 6 7 4 8 
			 December 5 1 0 4 3 5 13 
		
	
	The RN criterion for personnel being reported as AWOL is that Commanding Officers must ensure missing persons/absentees are reported to Naval Provost Marshal (East) within a period of 24 hours. The Army maintains a central record through those incidents reported to the Royal Military Police which occur when an individual has been absent for seven days. Absences for less than seven days are only recorded at unit level and not held centrally. The RAF figures show the records of incidents of AWOL reported regardless of timescale.
	Differences in figures for individual years compared to previous answers occur because personnel may have been wrongly reported as AWOL in the first instance, or conversely they may have subsequently been found to have been AWOL and the records rectified later.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what surveys of patient care his Department undertakes; and if he will publish the results.

Derek Twigg: The Royal Centre for Defence Medicine at Selly Oak, Birmingham and the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court are both currently conducting surveys of patient care. Both surveys indicate that the overwhelming majority of patients rate their overall care as good, very good or excellent.
	I am currently reviewing the survey data that are collected across all defence medical units, with a view to publication of further details in due course.

Armed Forces: Housing

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what complaints mechanism is available to military personnel who wish to register a complaint about living accommodation provided by  (a) Aspire Defence and  (b) Sodhexo Defence in military establishments.

Derek Twigg: Aspire Defence Ltd. is contracted to deliver and maintain new and refurbished single living, working, technical and recreational accommodation, including the full range of support services, to Aldershot Garrison and the garrisons located around the Salisbury Plain Training Area.
	If an individual wishes to register a complaint about their living accommodation, or any other aspects of Aspire's service (including that provided by their subcontractors); they can either report it to the Aspire Helpdesk (in person, by telephone or facsimile) or through the chain of command. The Aspire Helpdesk operates on a 24 hour, seven days a week basis, and is available to all personnel. It is performing to an exceptionally high standard, with 97 per cent. of calls being answered within 30 seconds, compared to the contractual specification of 95 per cent.
	Sodexho has no responsibilities for the provision or maintenance of accommodation at military establishments. Sodexho, as subcontractors on several PFI contracts, provide Soft Facilities Management services such as cleaning, catering, retail and leisure.

Armed Forces: Housing

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent on  (a) routine maintenance and  (b) upgrading of armed forces (i) married quarters and (ii) single accommodation in each year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to my answer on 16 January 2007,  Official Report, column 1008W, and to my letter of 20 March 2007, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces: Housing

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many cases of carbon monoxide poisoning were reported in armed forces accommodation in each year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: Records going back to 1997 are either no longer available or in a collated form. It will take time to identify what information is available and I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
	From the information that is readily available, I can confirm that there have been five suspect cases of carbon monoxide reported since January 2006 in service families accommodation in England and Wales, of which two were substantiated and remedial action taken.

Armed Forces: Housing

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of service families' accommodation was deemed uninhabitable in each year since 2005.

Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally and it will take time to collate. I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces: Housing

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service married quarters were built in each year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally and will take time to collate. I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces: Life Insurance

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the merits of seeking to promote risk-blind life insurance schemes endorsed by his Department for low-risk armed services personnel.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 16 July 2007
	As a matter of policy MOD does not endorse or sponsor any commercial insurance scheme. The MOD, therefore, leaves the decision on whether to take out personal insurance to the individual as individual needs vary and personal insurance is a complex issue which is increasingly regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). The MOD does, however, provide significant financial benefits for attributable death and injury during service. These were improved under the 2005 Armed Forces Pension scheme and Compensation scheme introduced on 6 April 2005.
	There are two main life insurance schemes available to Service personnel that cover all risks including war and terrorism. Both provide cover to all personnel, regardless of whether they are low or high risk to the insurer. One of these schemes, PAX (which provides personal accident and life cover) is risk blind as the premium is set at a flat rate for all. Whilst premiums under the other scheme, Service Life insurance (SLI), take account of age and smoking history and therefore are not risk blind, they are not loaded for high risk activities and are therefore comparable to those paid by civilians.

Departments: BAE Systems

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many former departmental staff are working in senior management positions with BAE Systems.

Derek Twigg: The MOD does not hold this information.

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people in his Department have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) dismissed for (i) inappropriate use of the internet while at work and (ii) using work telephones to access premium rate telephone numbers in the last 12 months.

Derek Twigg: Information is not held centrally in respect of MOD civil servants and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The following table shows the figures for the armed forces during the period June 2006 to June 2007.
	
		
			   Disciplined  Dismissed 
			   Royal Navy  Army  RAF  Total  Royal Navy  Army  RAF  Total 
			 Internet 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Telephone 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Notes: 1. The same army service person disciplined for inappropriate use of the internet while at work was also disciplined for using a work telephone to access premium rate telephone numbers. 2. These figures show the records of details held centrally, there may also be cases dealt with at unit/station level by disciplinary or administrative action depending on the circumstances. Records of these are not held centrally.

Departments: Land

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what disposals his Department made of land in Hampshire in each year since 1997; and whether he required any of the land to be used for social housing.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) supports the Government's housing agenda and works closely with English Partnerships, the regional development agencies, local authorities and other key stakeholders when considering its disposal strategy. This will often include an assessment of development and regeneration opportunities, including the need for social housing, through the preparation of a planning briefer outline planning application. This can be taken forward by prospective purchasers but it is not for the MOD to impose any requirements.
	The MOD property assets disposed of in Hampshire for the years requested are listed as follows. The list does not include the Service Families Accommodation (SFA) in Hampshire, that was part of the SFA estate in England and Wales sold to Annington Homes Ltd. in 1996.
	While every care has been taken in preparing this response in the time available, the accuracy can not be guaranteed prior to 2000 when electronic records were introduced.
	 Financial year 2006-07
	Clayhall Cottage, 51 Clayhall Road, Gosport
	Defence Munitions Dean Hill, Main Site and adjacent land
	Royal Navy Military Transport Depot, Hilsea
	Queensgate site, Farnborough
	Community Centre, Guillemont Fields, Cove
	Further land at North Lane, Aldershot
	Land at 1 Roman Way, Barton Stacey
	Civil Enclave, Farnborough
	 Financial year 2005-06
	HMS Daedalus Technical Site and Residual Airfield areas
	HMS Daedalus Main Airfield area.
	Fleet Photographic Unit, Stamshaw
	Footbridge above Nimrod Drive (Rowner Footbridge)
	Portsmouth Private Finance Initiative (SFA) Phase 1, Daedalus
	Small plot of land adjacent to Eastney Sports Ground
	Strip of land at 54 Military Road, Gosport
	Small parcel of Land at Oil Fuel Depot Gosport
	Pumphouse Site, Church Crookham
	Land adjacent King George V cottages, Minley
	Land at Lancaster Way, Farnborough
	Minley Farm West, Minley
	 Financial year 2004-05
	The Brambles, 44 Marine Parade West, Lee-on-the-Solent
	1-46 Rodney Close, Rowner, Gosport
	Land at Seafield Park, Stubbington
	Land at Manor House Farm, Barton Stacey
	Garden Land at Amport House, Andover
	Ski-Slope, Aldershot
	Burger King/Car wash site, Wellington Ave, Aldershot
	Land at Norris Bridge, Aldershot
	RAF Officers' Mess, Farnborough Rd, Farnborough
	Land adjacent to Hawley Training Area
	Land at North Lane, Aldershot
	 Financial year 2003-04
	Disposal of SCU Leydene, East Meon
	Sale of Fort Southwick, Portsdown
	2-12 (even) Military Road, Hilsea, Portsmouth
	Royal Engineer Lines/St. Lucia Lodge, Bordon
	Land at Hospital Road, Aldershot
	Land at The Ferns, Aldershot
	Vine Cottage Bungalow plot, Aldershot
	 Financial year 2002-03
	Land at United Services Sports Ground, Portsmouth
	DERA Alverstoke, Fort Monckton, Fort Road, Gosport
	Portsdown Land Based Test Site, Southwick Road, Cosham
	DERA Pyestock
	DERA Farnborough
	Land at St. Christopher's Road, Cove
	Land at Lions Field, Oakhanger
	Queen Elizabeth Barracks, Church Crookham
	T site, Farnborough Airfield
	 Financial year 2001-02
	Disposal of Searles House, Winchester
	Disposal of Industrial land, Frater Gate, Gosport
	Frater Metal Tents site, Royal Navy Armament Depot Frater, Gosport
	 Financial year 2000-01
	Cambridge House
	Sale of Pewitt Island
	Territorial Army Centre Redan Road, Aldershot
	Martin Lines, Church Crookham
	Woodland/pond, Pumphouse Triangle, Woolmer
	Further land at Pumphouse Triangle, Woolmer
	Lasham Timber Mill, Lasham
	Territorial Army HQ, Carlton Terrace, Southampton
	 Financial year 1999-2000
	Wireless Transmitter Station Stubbington
	Beaumont Stables and Riding School, Aldershot
	Lasham Airfield, Lasham
	Factory site, Farnborough
	Land for link road, Woolmer
	Area K, Bordon
	 Financial year 1998-99
	Sale of Royal Navy Victualling Depot Botley
	Plot 2 Development land, Norway Road (Rugby Camp)
	Sale of Boat Compound, Ferry Road
	Plot 1 Development land, Norway Road (Rugby Camp)
	Eastney Furniture Store
	Disposal of land at United Services Sports Ground, Portsmouth
	Anglesey Lodge, Aldershot
	Land at Coopers Lane, Bramley
	 Financial year 1997-98
	Sale of Fleet Air Arm Memorial
	Land at the junction of Manor Way and Newton Place
	Bunker Site, Brune Way
	HMS Nelson, Gunwharf
	Sale of Royal Marines Association Pavilion, Eastney, Portsmouth
	Land at Tipner Lane Portsmouth
	Land at Stamshaw Promenade
	Hilsea Sportsfield
	Sale of land at Hilsea Sportsfields
	Ordnance Supply Unit Liphook, Liphook
	48, Coopers Lane, Bramley

Departments: Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent on overnight accommodation by civil servants within his Department's areas of responsibilities in the last 12 months.

Derek Twigg: This information is not held centrally in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Public Appointments

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the business appointments process comprises; and whether interviews are required in addition to written applications.

Des Browne: holding answer 16 July 2007
	The Rules on the Acceptance of Outside Appointments by Crown Servants' are set out in The Civil Service Management Code (Section 4.3 Annex A). Applications from MOD staff at Senior Civil Service Pay Band 2 (SCS PB2) or military equivalent and below will be approved at an appropriate senior level within the MOD, taking into consideration the results of internal consultation and representations from competitor companies, and, in the case of SCS PB2 level applicants, the views of the Head of the Home Civil Service. For more senior applicants, the MOD provides the independent Advisory Committee on Business Appointments with a recommendation and the final decision is made by the Prime Minister on the advice of the Advisory Committee.
	Interviews are not required, but a meeting may be requested by an applicant before a final decision is taken on their application.

Depleted Uranium: Irish Sea

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many depleted uranium shells were fired into the Irish Sea and the waters feeding into the Irish Sea in each of the last 30 years.

Derek Twigg: pursuant to the reply, 5 July 2007, Official Report, c. 1134W
	The final sentence should read:
	The reason for the discrepancies cannot be fully determined as original records have been destroyed, but it is known that in some case, preparatory rounds, which did not contain DU, were included in the earlier data.

Ex-servicemen: Disabled

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average period of time was for former service personnel between their discharge from service and receipt of veterans' disability benefits in each month in the last five years.

Derek Twigg: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many fatalities there were in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan in each year since 2003.

Des Browne: Information on casualties and fatalities in Iraq and Afghanistan is published on the MOD website (http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/FactSheets/ OperationsFactsheets) two weeks in arrears.
	The following table shows the number of fatalities UK forces have suffered while carrying out operations in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003.
	
		
			   Operation 
			   Telic (Iraq)  Herrick (Afghanistan) 
			 2003 53 0 
			 2004 22 1 
			 2005 23 1 
			 2006 29 39 
			 1 January 2007-15 July 2007 32 20

Ministry of Defence Police: Colchester Garrison

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Ministry of Defence Police  (a) inspectors,  (b) sergeants and  (c) constables are employed at Colchester Garrison.

Derek Twigg: The current number of Ministry of Defence Police officers employed at Colchester is:
	
		
			   Number 
			 Sergeants 2.5 
			 Constables 6.5

Modern Housing Solutions: Engineers

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many engineers are  (a) employed and  (b) privately contracted by Modern Housing Solutions.

Derek Twigg: Modern Housing Solutions (MHS) does not directly employ any engineers, although there are 1,861 engineers who are sub-contracted by MHS.

Modern Housing Solutions: Engineers

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to how many days of paid holiday engineers for Modern Housing Solutions are entitled; and at what times of year they are granted holiday leave.

Derek Twigg: There are no engineers directly employed by Modern Housing Solutions (MHS). All are sub-contracted by MHS and as such their holiday entitlement is at the discretion of their respective employers.

Navy: Military Bases

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when further consultation over the naval bases review will be commissioned; when it will begin; for what reason further consultation is being undertaken; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The naval base review (NBR) is currently considering a number of broad cross-Government issues. As part of this work, we are currently engaged with other Government Departments including HM Treasury, the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Communities and Local Government. Working with them, we are assessing the possible cross-Government cost implications for the different NBR options to ensure a clear understanding of the best value for the taxpayer.
	While this complex pan-Government work is progressing well, further work is required before final conclusions can be reached. One aspect of this additional work might be the need for public consultation.

Navy: Military Bases

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a decision has been taken in principle to retain all three naval bases.

Bob Ainsworth: No decisions have yet been taken with respect to the naval base review.

Nimrod Aircraft

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel are stationed at the Nimrod MRA4 trainer facility at Kinloss on an  (a) permanent and  (b) temporary basis; and at what cost in the last period for which figures are available.

Bob Ainsworth: Five RAF personnel are permanently stationed at the Nimrod MRA4 training facility at RAF Kinloss and their costs are estimated at £400,000 per annum. RAF members of the joint MOD/BAE Systems flight trials team who are stationed at Warton travel to RAF Kinloss to man the simulator as required, to assess the operation of the simulator against the actual aircraft and to confirm its suitability for training. Costs of these personnel are not separately recorded.

RAF Lakenheath: Nuclear Weapons

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many US nuclear weapons are based at USAF Lakenheath, Suffolk; and what plans there are to reduce the number.

Bob Ainsworth: NATO's Strategic Concept (paragraph 63) states that
	"Nuclear forces based in Europe and committed to NATO provide an essential political and military link between the European and the North American members of the Alliance. The Alliance will therefore maintain adequate nuclear forces in Europe."
	It is NATO and UK policy to neither confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons at a given location.

Territorial Army: Expenditure

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total expenditure was on the Territorial Army in each year since 1997.

Bob Ainsworth: The information is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Torpedoes: Environment Protection

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what limitations have been imposed on Royal Navy heavyweight torpedo firings following adverse environmental impact assessments in respect of the copper guidance wires; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: We are not aware of any adverse environmental impact statements in respect of the Royal Navy's heavyweight torpedo guide wire system. No restrictions have therefore been imposed on heavyweight torpedo firings.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what matters are to be discussed at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in November; what the Government's objectives for that meeting are; and if he will make a statement.

Meg Munn: The Ugandan theme for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting is transforming Commonwealth societies to achieve political, economic and human development. The formal agenda has yet to be confirmed, although there will be reports to Heads of Government from the Commonwealth Secretary-General's Commission on Respect and Understanding and from the Committee on Commonwealth Membership, as well as the selection of a new Commonwealth Secretary-General. My right. hon. Friend the Prime Minister looks forward to taking part in frank and fruitful discussions with his Commonwealth counterparts on these and other key issues at the meeting.

Entry Clearances: Training

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what training programmes are in place for staff assessing visa applications.

Kim Howells: Entry clearance officers (ECOs) with no previous entry clearance experience must complete an intensive three-week course before undertaking entry clearance work at our missions overseas. Immigration officers from the Border and Immigration Agency must complete a one-week 'conversion' course. Both courses are based on continuous assessment and all ECOs must obtain a "Pass" mark at the end of their training before they can take up their posting.
	Entry clearance managers (ECMs) must complete an eight-day course covering all aspects of visa section management. Officers who have had no entry clearance experience within the previous two years must also complete the three-week ECO course before taking up an ECM position.
	In addition, the training team delivers regional training workshops in the ten Director of Visa Services global regions between September and April each year.

Iran: Capital Punishment

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of the use of capital punishment, in particular stoning, in Iran over the last 12 months.

David Miliband: We are deeply concerned at the increasing use of capital punishment in Iran. Last year Iran executed more people than any other country in the world except China (whose population is over 15 times the size). Many of the most basic standards in the application of capital punishment are absent and executions are often carried out in public. Iran is one of a tiny handful of countries that continues to execute juvenile offenders. This abhorrent practice is a clear breach of Iran's international human rights commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and runs contrary to the moratorium on juvenile executions that Iran announced in 2005.
	We received reports that a man and a woman, Jafar Kiani and Mokarrameh Ebrahimi, were due to be stoned to death for adultery in Qazvin province in June. The EU presidency made representations to the Iranian authorities, and the executions were halted. We were very disturbed to hear confirmation from the Iranian Judiciary, that Mr. Kiani was subsequently executed by stoning on 5 July. The Head of Iran's Judiciary announced a moratorium on stonings in 2002 and although stoning sentences continue to be handed down by judges, this is the first confirmed report of a sentence being carried out in recent years. The EU presidency issued an immediate statement, on 10 July, condemning the sentence, which is in clear violation of international laws, and called on Iran to stop the execution of Ms Ebrahimi. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also issued a statement of concern on 10 July. We are also concerned by the recent announcement by a Judiciary spokesperson that Iran intends to hang 20 criminals imminently.
	We remain strongly opposed to the death penalty in all its forms and consider stoning to be a cruel and inhuman punishment. We will continue to urge Iran to uphold its international human rights obligations, to implement fully the moratoria on stonings and juvenile executions and to introduce them into law, as recommended in the UN General Assembly Resolution on Human Rights in Iran adopted in December 2006, in order to abolish these punishments completely.

Iran: Capital Punishment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of trends in use of stoning as a penalty in Iran.

Kim Howells: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave him today (UIN 149983) and the reply my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary gave to the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague) also today (UIN 149714).

Iran: Capital Punishment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made in the case of Jafar Kiani, recently stoned to death in the village of Aghche Kand, North West Iran, for alleged adultery.

Kim Howells: We received reports in June that Jafar Kiani and his partner Mokarrameh Ebrahimi were due to be executed imminently by stoning for adultery. The EU presidency immediately made representations to the Iranian authorities, on behalf of all EU partners, in Tehran and Berlin on 20 June. The Iranian Foreign Ministry and Judiciary gave assurances that the moratorium on stoning, announced in 2002, was still in place and the executions would be halted.
	We were therefore extremely shocked to hear confirmation from the Iranian Judiciary that Jafar Kiani was subsequently stoned to death on 5 July, despite these assurances. Although stoning sentences continue to be handed down by judges, this is the first confirmed report of a sentence being carried out in recent years. Mr. Kiani's execution violates both Iran's declared moratorium on stoning and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a party. The ICCPR states that "in countries which have not abolished the death penalty, the sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes" and that "no-one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment". The stoning of Mr. Kiani violates both these principles.
	The EU presidency issued an immediate statement on 10 July condemning the execution of Mr. Kiani and called on Iran to stop the execution of Mokarrameh Ebrahimi. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also issued a statement of concern on 10 July. I called in the Iranian ambassador on 16 July to protest this execution. I restated our fundamental opposition to the death sentence in all circumstances and urged the authorities to uphold the moratorium and to ensure that it is applied in the case of Ms Ebrahimi.

Iran: Nuclear Power

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response he has made to the remarks by the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the 9 July meeting of the IAEA board of governors that there has been a slowing in the process of commissioning new cascades in Iran's centrifuge facility at Natanz; and what the change in the use of centrifuges at Natanz has been.

David Miliband: We have noted the remarks of the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Dr. El Baradei, about a slowing in the process of commissioning new cascades at Natanz. We await further information from the IAEA before we can make a detailed assessment of this development, but a key point is that the relevant UN Security Council resolutions require Iran to suspend all enrichment-related activities, not merely to slow down the rate of their expansion.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his latest assessment is of Iran's military nuclear capability.

Kim Howells: We have serious concerns about Iran's nuclear programme. The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported on 23 May that he was still unable to verify certain aspects relevant to the scope and nature of Iran's programme. Therefore, the IAEA was unable to provide assurances about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities, or about the exclusively peaceful nature of the programme. Until the IAEA can provide such assurances, the international community's concerns about Iran's programme will remain.

Middle East: Terrorism

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what recent representations he has made to the Palestinian authorities on the production of children's videos encouraging attacks on Israeli citizens; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what recent representations he has made to Arab Governments on the production of children's videos encouraging attacks on Israeli citizens; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: Following the broadcast in April of a Palestinian children's TV programme which sought to incite violence against Israel and the US, the then Palestinian National Unity Government asked the TV station to stop the programme. The then Palestinian Information Minister, Mustafa Barghouti said the programme took a "mistaken approach" to the political situation. The programme was finally pulled on 29 June. We have not made any representations to the Palestinian Authority or Arab Governments on this issue.
	The UK continues to condemn any actions which incite hatred and violence.

Moldova: Official Visits

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to support the first ever visit of the President of Moldova to the United Kingdom in autumn 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: We are looking at future opportunities for inward visits from Moldova from senior figures including the President of Moldova. The timing of the president's visit, however, has not yet been confirmed.
	The UK enjoys a constructive relationship with Moldova and welcomes further co-operation between the UK and Moldova both bilaterally and within the EU. Over the last year, we have welcomed many high profile visitors to the UK, particularly Moldovan Ministers and parliamentarians. The Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament, Dr. Marian Lupu, visited the UK in February last year for meetings with Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials. Valeriu Ostalep, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and European Integration visited the UK in July 2006, while the Minister of Defence, Valeriu Plesca, visited the UK in September 2006, meeting with, among others, my noble Friend the Minister of State for Defence, Lord Drayson. My right hon. Friend the Member for Ashfield (Mr. Hoon) the then Minister for Europe met President Voronin and other senior figures during his visit to Moldova in February this year, and met the First Deputy Prime Minister, Mrs. Zinaida Grecianîi, on her visit here last November.

Nuclear Disarmament

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by what means he plans to take forward the proposals announced by his predecessor to the Carnegie International conference on 25 June of creating a disarmament laboratory to support a verification of the dismantlement of nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles.

Kim Howells: My right hon. Friend the former Foreign Secretary announced that the UK would act as a "disarmament laboratory" for the thinking and practical work required to move forward global nuclear disarmament.
	As the speech made clear, we are supporting an independent International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) in-depth study to help determine the requirements for the eventual elimination of all nuclear weapons. In particular, we are working with IISS on holding a workshop to focus on some of the crucial technical questions in this area.
	We have also tasked the Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston with some detailed work on key stages in the verification of the reduction and elimination of nuclear weapons. This work is beginning and will produce results over the next few years.

Palestinians: Politics and Government

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is  (a) taking and  (b) plans to take to strengthen the emergency Government of Mahmoud Abbas; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: EU Foreign Ministers agreed at the 18 June General Affairs and External Relations Council to urgent practical and financial assistance including: direct financial support to the new Palestinian Government; support to the Palestinian civilian police; the resumption of the EU border assistance mission at the Rafah (Gaza-Egypt) crossing; and intensive efforts to build the institutions of a future Palestinian state.
	On 19 June, my right. hon. Friend the then Secretary of State for International Development announced a £1 million contribution to the International Committee of the Red Cross' work in Gaza and the West Bank. We continue to support the temporary international mechanism, which plays a valuable role in providing assistance to the Palestinian people. We are also working with the new emergency Government to help bring stability and security to the occupied Palestinian territories.

Palestinians: Politics and Government

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to President Abbas of the Palestinian Authority to amend the Fatah constitution to remove articles that call for eradication of Israel; what response was received; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The Fatah constitution does call for the "eradication of Zionist economic, political, military and cultural existence". But Fatah, as a member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), is a signatory to the Oslo Peace Accords, which clearly state that "the PLO recognises the right of the State of Israel to exist in peace and security".
	The letter of mutual recognition from Yasser Arafat, representing the PLO at the time, to Yitzhak Rabin, the then Israeli Prime Minister, in September 1993 clearly states
	"the PLO affirms that those articles of the Palestinian Covenant which deny Israel's right to exist, and the provisions of the Covenant which are inconsistent with the commitments of this letter are now inoperative and no longer valid. Consequently, the PLO undertakes to submit to the Palestinian National Council for formal approval the necessary changes in regard to the Palestinian Covenant."
	We have therefore not made any representations to Palestinian President Abbas on this issue.

Western Sahara: Referendums

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the UN Secretary General on the possibility of a referendum on the future of the western Sahara; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: My right. hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not discussed the question of western Sahara with the UN Secretary-General, but UK officials in New York are in regular contact with their UN counterparts. We will continue, through my meetings and those of officials, to discuss this issue with all interested parties.
	The UK regards the status of western Sahara as undetermined, pending UN efforts to find a solution. To this end, the UK fully supports the efforts of the UN Secretary-General and his personal envoy to the western Sahara, Peter van Walsum, to assist the parties to achieve a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution, which will provide for the self determination of the people of western Sahara.
	The UN Security Council adopted UN Security Council Resolution 1754 on 30 April, which extended the mandate of the UN mission for the referendum in western Sahara. There are no plans for a referendum to be held in the near future. However, the resolution also called for both sides to enter into negotiations without preconditions. The UK welcomes the first round of these talks between the parties, hosted by the UN in Manhasset, New York, on 18-19 June, and the agreement by all parties to take part in a further round in August.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Antisocial Behaviour: Torbay

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what initiatives to tackle antisocial behaviour the Government have funded in Torbay since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: In 2005-06, Torbay council received £216,044 revenue and £46,305 capital Safer Stronger Communities Fund grant from the Home Office. This included £25,000 for a local antisocial behaviour co-ordinator, to prioritise and drive forward action on local issues.
	Since 2006-07, Torbay council has received centrally pooled Safer Stronger Communities (SSC) funding from Communities and Local Government. The pooled grant available was £216,044 revenue and £46,305 capital in 2006-07; and £321,848 revenue and £182,475 capital in 2007-08. Although there is no requirement to use this funding for specific antisocial behaviour initiatives, Torbay has agreed through its local area agreement to deliver a range of outcomes using this funding including a reduction in public perceptions of antisocial behaviour.
	In 2006-07, Torbay received £14,000 from the Respect Task Force for targeted action against antisocial behaviour, £2,000 for a merchandise procurement and publicity campaign, £5,000 towards project work to scope a single non-emergency number and £7,000 towards a clean up campaign.
	As one of the 77 target areas working closely with the Respect Task Force, Torbay has been allocated additional funding in 2007-08 of up to £50,000 for a parenting practitioner to work with parents whose children are involved in or at risk of engaging in antisocial behaviour.

Children: Databases

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  when he expects the ContactPoint project to commence operation;
	(2)  how many people are expected to be able to access ContactPoint;
	(3)  what response he has had from local authorities about their preparedness to commence operation of ContactPoint;
	(4)  how much has been spent on ContactPoint; and how much has been budgeted for completion of the project;
	(5)  what estimate has been made of the annual running costs of ContactPoint once it has been initiated.

Kevin Brennan: In relation to question 150348, ContactPoint will be available to all local authorities in England by the end of 2008. By that time the system will have also been made available to our National Partners—Barnardo's, NSPCC, NCH, the Children's Society, KIDS, Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre and the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service—who will work with us in implementing the system and who will grant access and manage users in their organisations when it is operational. ContactPoint will be deployed initially in April 2008 to 17 Early Adopter authorities and Barnardo's, the Early Adopter National Partner.
	In relation to question 150349, we estimate that there will be some 330,000 ContactPoint users working in education, health, social care, youth justice and the voluntary sector.
	In relation to question 150350, we are working closely with all local authorities and National Partners to ensure their readiness for deployment in 2008. They provide regular reports on their progress to the Department, through an online tool—the local authority readiness assessment (LARA) system. Departmental officials also provide significant support to each authority and National Partner, in particular through a team of 11 regional coordinators who offer one to one support and bi-monthly networking and update opportunities. Local authorities and National Partners have also been provided with a range of tools and other support and guidance materials. Progress towards readiness to receive access to ContactPoint is on track.
	In relation to question 150351, we spent £28.4 million in 2006-07 and a further £11.2 million in the first three months of 2007-08. The total costs for implementing the system are estimated at £224 million. This includes the costs of adapting systems that will supply the data to ContactPoint and adapting the day-to-day systems used by practitioners they can access ContactPoint from their own systems. It also includes the costs to ensure security, data accuracy and staff training.
	In relation to question 150352, running costs thereafter are estimated to be £41 million per year. Most of this will go directly to local authorities to fund staff to ensure the ongoing security, accuracy and audit of ContactPoint.

Children: Day Care

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what consultations his Department has undertaken with different community groups on the provision of child care.

Beverley Hughes: We consulted widely in the summer and autumn last year on draft statutory guidance to local authorities undertaking child care sufficiency assessments; and between February and May this year on draft statutory guidance to local authorities on securing sufficient child care. Both documents benefited from revisions made in the light of comments from a range of groups, including local authorities themselves, representative organisations and child care providers. Our guidance emphasises the importance of local authorities—whose job it is to facilitate and support child care in their areas—establishing the needs of their different community groups and working to meet them.

Departments: Marketing

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost was of establishing his Department; and how much was accounted for by  (a) relocation expenses and  (b) re-branding expenses on (i) signs, (ii) stationery and (iii) departmental publications.

Edward Balls: There were no costs for relocation or re-branding. Costs for producing branded material in relation to the creation of DCSF were as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 Relocation No cost 
			 Signs 3,750 
			 Stationery (recycling costs of previous stock) 900 
			 Departmental publications No cost

Departments: Policy

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he plans to publish the goals and direction for his Department for the next 10 years including his Children's Plan; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Balls: As I set out in my statement to the House on 10 July 2007, we are launching a nationwide consultation to draw up a children's plan for our country. I plan to be able to report the results of that consultation and set out the emerging children's plan in the autumn setting out the goals and directions for the Department for the next 10 years.

Pupil Exclusions

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what data were collected by his Department on reasons for exclusions in maintained primary and secondary schools in 2005-06;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the changes to the collection of data on the reasons for exclusion in maintained primary and special schools.

Kevin Brennan: In the academic year 2005/06 data on the reason for exclusion were collected from maintained secondary schools only.
	Prior to 2005/06 data on the reason for exclusion were collected as part of the Termly Exclusions Survey for maintained primary, secondary, special schools and pupil referral units. However there has been a staggered move to collect exclusions data through the School Census, streamlining data collection and reducing both the number of data collections and the administrative burden on schools.
	Secondary schools returned exclusion data via the School Census for the first time in May 2006. Primary and special schools returned fixed period and permanent exclusion data through the census for the first time in May 2007. No data on fixed period or reason for exclusion were collected from primary or special schools for 2005/06. The data collected in May 2007 relate to exclusions occurring in the previous autumn term, therefore data will be available for the 2006/07 academic year.

Pupil Exclusions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) temporary and  (b) permanent exclusions there were of (i) 12-year-olds, (ii) 13-year-olds and (iii) 14-year-olds in the most recent 12 months for which figures are available; what proportion those figures represented of the age cohort in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The available information on fixed term and permanent exclusions is contained in the following tables.
	These tables were published as part of the recent Statistical First Release on exclusions which can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000733/index.shtml.
	
		
			  Maintained secondary schools ( 1,2) : number of fixed period exclusions by age and gender England, 2005-06( 3) 
			   Fixed period exclusions 
			   Boys  Girls  Total 
			  Number of exclusions
			 Age(4)
			 4 and under 0 0 0 
			 5 0 0 0 
			 6 0 0 0 
			 7 0 0 0 
			 8 # 0 # 
			 9 530 80 610 
			 10 860 90 950 
			 11 31,830 6,690 38,530 
			 12 49,370 16,850 66,230 
			 13 61,000 27,730 88,720 
			 14 64,220 28,390 92,610 
			 15 40,030 14,640 54,670 
			 16 760 200 950 
			 17 300 80 380 
			 18 20 10 30 
			 19 and over 10 # 10 
			 Total(5) 248,950 94,750 343,840 
			 
			  Percentage of school population( 6)
			 Age(4)
			 4 and under 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 5 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 6 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 7 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 8 # 0.00 # 
			 9 4.36 0.69 2.57 
			 10 6.16 0.64 3.46 
			 11 11.15 2.43 6.87 
			 12 16.98 5.97 11.56 
			 13 20.26 9.51 14.97 
			 14 21.35 9.67 15.58 
			 15 13.67 5.11 9.44 
			 16 0.84 0.19 0.50 
			 17 0.43 0.09 0.25 
			 18 0.33 0.21 0.27 
			 19 and over 1.98 # 1.00 
			 Total(5) 14.96 5.77 10.40 
			 # = less than five, or a rate based on less than five. (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) For the 2005/06 school year, information on fixed period exclusions from secondary schools was collected via the School Census for the first time (the Termly Exclusions Survey has been discontinued). For exclusions during 2006-07, information on fixed period exclusions will also be collected from primary and special schools. (4) Age as at 31 August 2005. (5) There were 140 exclusions for which gender and age were unclassified and three male exclusions for whom age was unclassified. These have been included in the total only. (6) The number of exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of pupils of each age in secondary schools as at January 2006.  Note: 1. Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: School Census 
		
	
	
		
			  Maintained primary, secondary and special schools( 1,2) : number of permanent exclusions by age and gender England, 2005-06 (estimates)( 3) 
			   Permanent exclusions 
			   Boys  Girls  Total 
			  Number of exclusions
			 Age(4)
			 4 and under 10 0 10 
			 5 50 0 50 
			 6 70 10 80 
			 7 110 10 120 
			 8 180 10 180 
			 9 260 10 270 
			 10 280 20 290 
			 11 580 60 640 
			 12 1,210 310 1,520 
			 13 1,750 590 2,340 
			 14 1,960 640 2,600 
			 15 780 190 970 
			 16 30 10 30 
			 17 20 10 20 
			 18 # 0 # 
			 19 and over 0 0 0 
			 Total(5) 7,280 1,860 9,170 
			 
			  Percentage of school population( 6)
			 Age( 4)
			 4 and under 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 5 0.02 0.00 0.01 
			 6 0.03 0.00 0.01 
			 7 0.04 0.00 0.02 
			 8 0.06 0.00 0.03 
			 9 0.09 0.00 0.05 
			 10 . 0.09 0.01 0.05 
			 11 0.20 0.02 0.11 
			 12 0.41 0.11 0.26 
			 13 0.57 0.20 0.39 
			 14 0.64 0.22 0.43 
			 15 0.26 0.06 0.16 
			 16 0.03 0.01 0.02 
			 17 0.03 0.01 0.02 
			 18 # 0.00 # 
			 19 and over 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 Total(5) 0.19 0.05 0.12 
			 # = less than five, or a rate based on less than five. (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes both maintained and non-maintained special schools. (3) Figures relating to permanent exclusions are estimates based on incomplete pupil-level data. (4) Age as at 31 August 2005. (5) There were 27 permanent exclusions for which gender and age are unclassified. These have been included in the total. (6) The number of exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of pupils of each age in primary, secondary and special schools (excluding dually registered pupils in special schools) in January 2006.  Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: School Census

Pupil Exclusions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were  (a) temporarily and  (b) permanently excluded from English (i) infant schools, (ii) primary schools, (iii) secondary schools and (iv) colleges in each year since 1990-91, broken down by age; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The available information on fixed term and permanent exclusions is contained in the following tables. The breakdown of infant schools and colleges requested is not available.
	Information is not available back to 1990-91. Data were collected for earlier years for permanent exclusions but not published as part of the most recent Statistical First Release.
	
		
			  Maintained primary, secondary and special schools( 1, 2) : Number of fixed period exclusions by type of school—England, 2003/04-2005/06( 3) 
			   2003/04( 3, 4)  2004/05( 4)  2005/06( 5) 
			  Primary schools
			 Number of fixed period exclusions 41,300 43,720 n/a 
			 Percentage of fixed period exclusions(6) 12 11 n/a 
			 Percentage of school population(7) 0.97 1.04 n/a 
			 
			  Secondary schools
			 Number of fixed period exclusions 288,040 329,680 343,840 
			 Percentage of fixed period exclusions(6) 84 85 n/a 
			 Percentage of school population(7) 8.66 9.94 10.40 
			 
			  Special schools
			 Number of fixed period exclusions 15,170 16,170 n/a 
			 Percentage of fixed period exclusions(6) 4 4 n/a 
			 Percentage of school population(7) 17.45 18.91 n/a 
			 
			  All schools
			 Number of fixed period exclusions 344,510 389,560 n/a 
			 Percentage of fixed period exclusions(6) 100 100 n/a 
			 Percentage of school population(7) 4.49 5.12 n/a 
			 n/a = Not available (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes maintained special schools. Excludes non-maintained special schools. (3) In 2003/04, information on fixed period exclusions was collected for the first time. (4) Information on fixed period exclusions has been derived from Termly Exclusion Survey returns. (5) For the 2005/06 school year, information on fixed period exclusions from secondary schools was collected via the School Census for the first time (the Termly Exclusions Survey has been discontinued). For exclusions during 2006/07, information on fixed period exclusions will also be collected from primary and special schools. (6) The number of fixed period exclusions expressed as a percentage of the total number. (7) The number of fixed period exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils) in January each year.  Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Termly Exclusions Survey and School Census 
		
	
	
		
			  Maintained primary, secondary and special schools( 1, 2) : Number of permanent exclusions by type of school—England, 1997/98-2005/06 
			   1997/98  1998/99  1999/2000  2000/01( 3)  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06 
			  Primary schools  
			 Number of permanent exclusions 1,540 1,370 1,230 1,440 1,450 1,300 1,270 1,090 970 
			 Percentage of permanent exclusions(4) 13 13 15 16 15 14 13 12 11 
			 Percentage of school population(5) 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.02 
			   
			  Secondary schools  
			 Number of permanent exclusions 10,190 8,640 6,710 7,310 7,740 7,690 8,320 8,070 7,990 
			 Percentage of permanent exclusions(4) 83 83 81 80 81 83 84 85 87 
			 Percentage of school population(5) 0.33 0.28 0.21 0.23 0.24 0.23 0.25 0.24 0.24 
			   
			  Special schools  
			 Number of permanent exclusions 570 440 380 390 340 300 300 280 210 
			 Percentage of permanent exclusions(4) 5 4 5 4 4 3 3 3 2 
			 Percentage of school population(5) 0.58 0.45 0.40 0.41 0.36 0.32 0.33 0.31 0.23 
			  All schools  
			 Number of permanent exclusions 12,300 10,440 8,320 9,140 9,540 9,290 9,880 9,440 9,170 
			 Percentage of permanent exclusions(4) 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 
			 Percentage of school population(5) 0.16 0.14 0.11 0.12 0.12 0.12 0.13 0.12 0.12 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes both maintained and non-maintained special schools. (3) Permanent exclusions for 2000/01 are estimated as a number of local authorities have not confirmed the data for their schools. (4) The number of permanent exclusions expressed as a percentage of the total number. (5) The number of permanent exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils in special schools) in January each year.  Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: School Census 
		
	
	These tables were published as part of the recent Statistical First Release on exclusions which can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000733/index.shtml.

Pupil Exclusions: Appeals

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of appeals against permanent exclusion were decided in favour of parents in each year since 1990-91; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The available information is contained in the following table. The relevant data has been italicised.
	
		
			  Maintained primary, secondary and special schools( 1) : summary of exclusion appeals, England, 1997/98 to 2005/06 
			   Appeals against exclusion from a school 
			   1997/98  1998/99  1999/2000  2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06 
			 Number of appeals lodged 1,290 1,220 950 1,100 1,130 1,070 1,130 1,090 1,060 
			 Number of appeals heard 1,010 960 860 980 1,060 990 1,050 1,030 980 
			 Percentage of appeals heard(2) 78.6 79.3 91.0 89.8 94.2 92.2 92.8 94.8 92.8 
			 Number of appeals determined in favour of the parent/pupil 200 220 320 310 260 210 220 220 240 
			  Percentage of appeals determined in favour of the parent/pupil( 3)  20.2  22.8  36.7  31.9  24.4  21.1  21.2  21.5  24.1 
			 Number of successful appeals where reinstatement was directed n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 150 130 110 130 
			 Percentage of successful appeals where reinstatement was directed(4) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 71.3 57.0 49.1 55.5 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) Excludes non-maintained special schools. (2) Shown as a percentage of appeals lodged. (3) Shown as a percentage of appeals heard. (4) Shown as a percentage of appeals determined in favour of the parent/pupil.  Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: School Exclusion Appeals Survey. 
		
	
	This table was published as part of the recent Statistical First Release on exclusions which can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000733/index.shtml
	Information is not available back to 1990/91. Data were collected in 1995/96 and 1996/97 but not published as part of the most recent Statistical First Release.

Pupils: Intimidation

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the Prime Minister's answer of 4 July 2007,  Official Report, column 956, what the basis was for the Prime Minister's statement that the additional funding for ChildLine would be spread over two years; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Balls: The Government plan to provide the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children with a £30 million grant to help the NSPCC update and expand its helpline services, including ChildLine, which support vulnerable children and help keep them safe from abuse. The grant will in fact be spread over the next four years.

School Meals: Take-Up

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children in English schools took school meals in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: Information on the quality, availability and uptake of school meals is not held centrally. However, data from the school census show the proportion taking free school meals as at January 2007 was 13.1 per cent. in maintained nursery and primary schools and 9.6 per cent. in maintained secondary schools. This compares with 13.3 per cent. and 9.9 per cent. respectively for January 2006. Figures for earlier years cannot be provided due to time constraints.
	Also, figures from the School Food Trust's 2006 annual survey of school meals take-up in England showed that take-up of school meals in 2005-06 was 42.3 per cent. in primary schools and 42.7 per cent. in secondary schools. Findings from the 2007 survey will be available in August.

Schools: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools were in  (a) special measures and  (b) receipt of intensive local authority support in each local authority area in each year since 1996; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The numbers in the table represent the schools in special measures at the end of each academic year since 31 August 1997. The figures for 2006/07 show the position at 31 March 2007, using the most recent information published by Ofsted.
	Local authority support is expected in every case of special measures. The nature of the support will vary according to the needs of the individual school and will be reflected in the statement of action for the school which the authority is required to prepare. Ofsted assess the quality of the local authority's support on their monitoring visits to the school.
	
		
			  Local authority  1996-97  1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Barking and Dagenham 0 0 1 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 2 
			 Barnet 0 3 5 3 2 1 2 8 4 0 2 
			 Barnsley 1 2 3 2 0 0 0 2 2 1 1 
			 Bath and NE Somerset 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Bedfordshire 5 2 0 2 2 3 3 5 1 1 2 
			 Bexley 0 2 2 1 2 3 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Birmingham 9 10 13 9 6 4 5 5 6 8 4 
			 Blackburn 5 3 4 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 1 
			 Blackpool 1 1 0 2 1 1 2 1 1 0 0 
			 Bolton 1 1 1 3 5 3 4 3 0 1 1 
			 Bournemouth 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 
			 Bracknell Forest 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Bradford 6 3 1 0 0 7 13 12 7 4 4 
			 Brent 2 4 4 5 5 3 2 2 1 2 2 
			 Brighton and Hove 2 4 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Bristol 1 7 6 4 4 4 4 4 3 5 6 
			 Bromley 2 3 3 1 1 0 1 2 1 1 1 
			 Buckinghamshire 1 3 2 5 5 2 0 0 1 1 2 
			 Bury 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 
			 Calderdale 3 4 3 2 1 0 1 3 1 0 2 
			 Cambridgeshire 3 3 3 2 3 5 4 1 3 1 2 
			 Camden 2 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Cheshire 0 1 0 2 4 3 2 2 1 1 3 
			 City of London 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Cornwall 1 2 2 3 2 1 2 4 4 5 4 
			 Coventry 3 4 3 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Croydon 5 7 2 0 0 0 2 3 3 2 1 
			 Cumbria 4 6 6 4 2 5 4 6 4 3 5 
			 Darlington 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Derby City 0 1 0 1 1 3 3 4 3 2 3 
			 Derbyshire 5 18 17 10 6 6 7 3 1 2 3 
			 Devon 4 8 8 3 3 1 2 4 1 3 4 
			 Doncaster 0 2 2 1 0 0 5 7 4 2 2 
			 Dorset 2 3 3 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Dudley 2 2 3 2 1 1 1 3 1 1 3 
			 Durham 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 
			 Ealing 1 2 1 3 4 3 1 0 0 1 1 
			 East Riding 1 1 3 5 2 3 3 4 3 1 0 
			 East Sussex 4 3 1 3 1 1 2 4 1 0 2 
			 Enfield 2 1 1 1 3 3 3 4 2 2 3 
			 Essex 10 18 17 18 18 11 8 11 7 6 7 
			 Gateshead 1 1 2 2 1 1 0 0 0 1 2 
			 Gloucestershire 2 5 5 5 1 1 3 3 2 3 4 
			 Greenwich 6 8 5 2 3 2 2 2 1 0 0 
			 Hackney 8 5 5 3 3 4 5 4 1 0 1 
			 Halton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 3 2 0 0 
			 Hampshire 3 11 8 11 3 3 3 5 2 5 5 
			 Haringey 4 7 5 3 2 0 2 2 1 0 0 
			 Harrow 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Hartlepool 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Havering 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Herefordshire 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Hertfordshire 6 7 6 4 7 8 8 7 2 0 3 
			 Hillingdon 2 3 2 3 2 1 3 2 3 1 0 
			 Hounslow 2 2 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Isle of Wight 0 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 2 1 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Islington 6 8 4 5 5 2 2 1 0 2 1 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 
			 Kent 15 17 13 8 12 12 14 16 10 1 4 
			 Kingston Upon Hull 7 5 2 4 3 1 2 2 1 1 1 
			 Kingston Upon Thames 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Kirklees 3 3 2 3 3 4 5 6 7 2 3 
			 Knowsley 0 3 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 
			 Lambeth 11 6 1 2 2 1 3 3 0 0 0 
			 Lancashire 11 15 8 6 2 5 4 2 2 3 6 
			 Leeds 5 5 5 4 3 2 4 4 1 1 4 
			 Leicester City 7 12 10 4 2 1 3 4 2 1 3 
			 Leicestershire 2 1 1 1 4 5 5 7 5 2 2 
			 Lewisham 5 6 2 5 3 4 1 1 0 1 0 
			 Lincolnshire 6 7 8 9 5 3 3 4 6 3 3 
			 Liverpool 9 15 12 3 2 0 0 2 1 1 0 
			 Luton 2 3 2 1 2 4 3 3 2 1 1 
			 Manchester 6 13 10 7 7 7 5 3 1 2 2 
			 Medway 2 2 2 2 2 2 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Merton 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 1 0 1 
			 Middlesbrough 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 
			 Milton Keynes 3 3 2 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 3 
			 Newcastle 4 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 
			 Newham 6 8 6 6 3 1 1 1 0 0 2 
			 Norfolk 11 9 10 11 9 6 6 5 5 3 9 
			 North East Lincolnshire 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 1 
			 North Lincolnshire 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 
			 North Somerset 1 2 1 1 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 
			 North Tyneside 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 
			 North Yorkshire 4 2 0 1 0 1 1 2 0 2 2 
			 Northamptonshire 3 3 6 7 3 4 4 5 6 6 7 
			 Northumberland 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 
			 Nottingham City 4 9 9 7 5 2 5 1 0 3 3 
			 Nottinghamshire 4 9 9 5 5 3 5 5 3 2 3 
			 Oldham 1 2 0 1 2 1 1 3 3 1 0 
			 Oxfordshire 4 8 7 8 6 4 3 5 1 2 2 
			 Peterborough 1 2 2 1 3 2 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Plymouth 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 1 1 
			 Poole 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Portsmouth 1 1 3 3 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 
			 Reading 0 3 3 4 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 
			 Redbridge 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 2 2 0 0 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 
			 Richmond Upon Thames 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Rochdale 1 1 1 2 1 2 2 2 3 1 0 
			 Rotherham 1 3 2 1 0 0 0 1 4 3 1 
			 Rutland 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Salford 3 3 1 0 1 1 2 4 6 3 2 
			 Sandwell 7 10 8 6 4 6 6 6 2 2 3 
			 Sefton 0 1 1 1 0 2 2 1 0 0 0 
			 Sheffield 6 9 10 8 8 1 2 2 1 1 2 
			 Shropshire 2 1 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 0 
			 Slough 3 2 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Solihull 1 3 2 1 0 0 1 1 1 3 3 
			 Somerset 2 3 2 2 1 0 1 1 3 5 5 
			 South Gloucestershire 0 0 2 3 1 0 2 1 1 1 1 
			 South Tyneside 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 
			 Southampton 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 
			 Southend 1 1 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 2 1 
			 Southwark 4 10 10 7 4 5 5 6 4 2 4 
			 St. Helens 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 
			 Staffordshire 6 5 2 5 5 4 2 4 6 7 8 
			 Stockport 2 2 1 0 0 1 3 1 0 0 0 
			 Stockton on Tees 1 2 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Stoke on Trent 3 7 5 1 2 3 2 1 2 8 6 
			 Suffolk 1 2 3 3 2 3 4 2 1 2 4 
			 Sunderland 2 3 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Surrey 4 9 4 3 4 4 3 6 8 4 6 
			 Sutton 2 2 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Swindon 0 1 1 3 4 2 2 3 1 2 0 
			 Tameside 1 4 4 4 3 2 2 3 1 0 1 
			 Telford and Wrekin 1 3 3 2 0 0 2 2 0 2 0 
			 Thurrock 1 3 2 3 4 5 1 1 0 1 0 
			 Torbay 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Tower Hamlets 2 6 7 6 4 5 2 0 1 1 1 
			 Trafford 0 1 2 2 2 0 0 1 2 1 3 
			 Wakefield 0 1 4 3 3 2 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Walsall 4 3 6 7 6 6 3 0 1 1 1 
			 Waltham Forest 5 2 2 5 4 3 1 0 1 0 1 
			 Wandsworth 5 5 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 0 
			 Warrington 0 1 3 2 1 1 1 2 3 1 0 
			 Warwickshire 1 4 6 6 3 1 1 4 5 5 4 
			 West Berkshire 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 
			 West Sussex 0 1 4 2 2 3 3 2 2 2 5 
			 Westminster 2 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Wigan 1 1 2 1 0 0 1 2 2 1 2 
			 Wiltshire 2 1 3 5 6 3 3 5 4 5 5 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Wirral 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 4 
			 Wokingham 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Wolverhampton 3 9 7 7 4 4 1 0 0 0 2 
			 Worcestershire 3 2 2 4 8 7 4 6 7 2 3 
			 York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Total 362 524 447 394 320 270 282 332 242 208 256

Sure Start Programme: Ethnic Groups

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what representations he has received from ethnic minority groups on the Sure Start scheme;
	(2)  what expenditure there has been on targeting the Sure Start scheme at ethnic minority communities;
	(3)  what comparative studies his Department has commissioned on the value of the Sure Start scheme to different ethnic minority communities;
	(4)  what discussions officials in his Department have had with counterparts in the Department for Communities and Local Government on the assistance provided by the Sure Start scheme to ethnic minority communities.

Beverley Hughes: Supporting families from black and minority ethnic families is a key priority for Sure Start local programmes and children's centres. The Department of Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) allocates grant funding to local authorities and decisions on spending this are taken locally. However we encourage them to take positive steps to provide services specially targeted to meet the needs of black and minority ethnic families.
	A comprehensive national evaluation of the Sure Start programme is being carried out on behalf of DCSF by the Institute for the Study of Children, Families and Social Issues, Birkbeck, University of London. This looks extensively at the experience of ethnic minority communities in Sure Start local programmes and specifically includes an assessment of the impact of Sure Start local programmes on child, family and parental outcomes from which impacts for children and families from different ethnic minority groups can be identified. The national evaluation uses the 2001 census ethnic group classification with results generally focusing on the following groups: White, Mixed Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Black Caribbean, Black African and Other. An early assessment of the impact of Sure Start local programmes on children, families and communities published in November 2005 found no significant differences in outcomes for children and families from different ethnic minority groups. The next phase of the longitudinal study of impacts is due to be published in spring 2008 and will include an assessment of impacts of the Sure Start programme for different ethnic minority groups. In addition, a focused study on how Sure Start Local Programmes worked with black and minority ethnic groups that identifies good practice in working with BME groups has also been carried out as part of the national evaluation and is available on the DCSF website at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/RRP/u015229/index.shtml.
	The revised practice guidance for local authorities and Sure Start children's centres, published last November, took account of the findings in the focused study report and gave advice about how to engage and support families from black and minority ethnic communities. We also issued late last year a performance management framework to help local authorities and children's centres judge how well their services were meeting and improving outcomes for families. This included specific advice about monitoring access and outcomes of black and minority ethnic families. In addition, 'Together for Children', the consortium appointed to support local authorities during the children's centre roll-out, have produced a toolkit which features advice and case studies on reaching families at greatest risk of social exclusion, including Black and minority ethnic families.
	My officials are in contact with their counterparts at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) about how Sure Start children's centres provide support to minority ethnic communities and DCLG are also represented on the steering group for the national evaluation of Sure Start. My Department has received no representations from ethnic minority groups on the Sure Start scheme.

Sure Start Programme: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Sure Start programme; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: There is a comprehensive national level evaluation of Sure Start in place, which began in January 2001 and will run until 2008. To date, 24 reports have been published, including four published at the end of June. These can be found at:
	http://www.surestart.gov.uk/research/evaluations/ness/nesspublications/
	Each element of the evaluation explores how effective Sure Start local programmes (SSLPs) are and provides examples of good practice and understanding that can feed into the future development of children's centres. A number of these studies focus on a specific aspect of work, for example, outreach and home visiting or maternity services, others take a more overarching view such as the reports "Understanding Variations in Effectiveness amongst SSLPs" and "Changes in the Characteristics of SSLP Areas between 2000/01 and 2004/05" that were published last month.
	These studies found that SSLPs were most effective when they implemented the programme well across all areas and that particularly important factors were having robust structures for governance and leadership, a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere, and empowerment of providers and users of services. They also found that there had been improvements in Sure Start local programme areas between 2001 and 2005, such as a reduction in the number of children living in workless households that was larger than that for England as a whole, though such changes cannot be directly linked to the work of the Sure Start programme.
	Early findings from the evaluation's Impact Study were published in November 2005 and showed that SSLPs had had some positive impacts on parenting and child outcomes, but that more needed to be done to reach the most disadvantaged groups. A fuller assessment of the impact of Sure Start based on a longitudinal study of children at age three years will be published in spring 2008.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan: Overseas Aid

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on delivery of humanitarian aid in Afghanistan.

Shahid Malik: According to the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA)(1), the following has been contributed to the humanitarian effort in Afghanistan over the last three years:
	
		
			   US  $ 
			 2004 162,366,273 
			 2005 79,906,460 
			 2006 153,181,425 
		
	
	Prior to 2003, the majority of DFID aid to Afghanistan was focused on immediate reconstruction and humanitarian needs. In 2003-04, the focus shifted to long- term developmental programmes in support of the Government of Afghanistan.
	DFID still retains some limited capacity to respond to humanitarian crises. For example, in 2006-07 the UK committed the following humanitarian aid to Afghanistan: £1 million for drought mitigation; £1.2 million to support HALO Trust's de-mining programme; and £30,000 to provide food and other essential items like soap and blankets for 3,000 internally displaced families in Helmand.
	Security concerns present difficulties for NGOs and development workers wishing to operate in some areas, particularly the south. This is why the presence of NATO forces, and British troops in Helmand, are essential to create the conditions in which humanitarian aid can be delivered more effectively. The vast majority of Afghans want to see a peaceful, prosperous, democratic country. We will continue to support them.
	(1) OCHA website database at:
	www.ocha.unog.ch; appeal and funding

Departments: Freedom of Information

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the requests made to his Department under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2000 in the last six months; and what the  (a) FOI case reference number,  (b) request summary,  (c) request outcome and  (d), where appropriate, reason for exemption was in each case.

Shahid Malik: A list of DFID Freedom of Information requests between January and June 2007 has been placed in the Library of the House.

Developing Countries: Water

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the effects of climate change on the provision of water in developing countries; and what steps his Department is taking on the matter.

Gareth Thomas: Climate change will affect the availability of water through levels of rainfall increasing (around the equator and in higher latitudes), decreasing (in mid-latitudes), becoming more variable from year to year and being more extreme (excessive rainfall in wet seasons and longer and more pronounced droughts in dry seasons). This will make provision of water in developing countries, where access to clean water is already extremely low and management of water for agriculture and other activities is weak, even harder.
	The UK is already committed to helping developing countries increase access to clean water. We are doubling funding available for water and sanitation in Africa to £91 million by 2007-08 and then doubling it again to £200 million a year by 2010-11. We have issued a Global Call to Action, calling for increased money for water and sanitation, for it to be spent more effectively and for the right structures to be in place to make this happen.
	We are also working to help developing countries take account of the impact of climate change on their ability to provide access to water. The new £800 million Environment Transformation Fund, announced in the last budget, will provide funds for developing countries to adapt to the impact of climate change, including on water. As the largest donor to the UN's Special Adaptation Funds, at £20 million, we are already helping developing countries take account of adaptation in their planning. We are improving access to relevant climate data for developing countries to plan on the basis of likely water availability. We are funding research into the best local responses to climate change, including to water supply problems, through our £24 million support to African research institutions, and will do the same in Asia and Latin America. We are making sure our own investments, including in the water sector, take account of the impact of climate change, as part of our on-going climate risk assessment exercise in Bangladesh, China, India and Kenya. And the impact of climate change will be central to our new water resource management strategy.
	In the longer term, the Government are working to minimise the impact of climate change on developing countries by achieving a post-Kyoto deal which stabilises greenhouse gas emissions below a dangerous level.

Developing Countries: Water

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department provides to increase water provision in developing countries.

Gareth Thomas: Provisional estimates of DFID bilateral expenditure show that DFID spent £46.8 million on water and sanitation in financial year 2006-07.
	In addition to direct bilateral expenditure on specific water and sanitation projects, spending on a range of other projects and programmes across DFID's portfolio will contribute to improving water supply and sanitation in developing countries. DFID's total support to the water sector—including through the World Bank, the multilateral development banks and the EC—was estimated to be £242 million in 2005-06, the latest year for which figures are available on this basis.

Developing Countries: Water

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate his Department has made of the number of people in the world without access to clean drinking water; and whether it is predicted that this figure will rise or fall in future years.

Gareth Thomas: The number of people lacking access to clean drinking water is estimated to be 1.1 billion.
	If current trends continue, the number of people without access to clean water will decrease further by 150 million by 2015, leaving over 900 million without access. In sub-Saharan Africa the situation is much worse, with the number of people without access to clean water increasing by 60 million between 1990 and 2004, taking account of the increase in population of 217 million. On current trends, between 2004 and 2015 the number of people lacking access to clean water in sub-Saharan Africa will increase by a further 47 million, taking account of projected population increases of 200 million.

St Helena: Airport

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the original budgeted cost for St. Helena airport was; and what the most recent estimated total outturn cost is.

Shahid Malik: Cost estimates for the St. Helena airport have not been published, as to do so could prejudice the outcome of the current competitive procurement process. DFID continues to update its estimates as additional information becomes available during the development of specifications for the airport and through the tender process.

Western Sahara: Overseas Aid

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid has been provided to western Sahara refugees by his Department; and how much is planned to be provided in 2008-09.

Shahid Malik: DFID does not have a bilateral aid programme for western Sahara refugees. However, between September 2006 and January 2008 the European Community Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) is providing a €10 million (£6.8 million) package of relief in the sectors of food, water, sanitation, health, education and shelter through various UN agencies and international NGOs. The UK contribution is 17.3 per cent., which is approximately £1.2 million. DFID also contributed $49 million to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in 2006 for its work with refugees across the world, including from western Sahara. DFID's humanitarian aid package for 2008-09 has not yet been agreed.

JUSTICE

Prisoners

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department is taking to improve the literacy and numeracy of prisoners.

Maria Eagle: Delivering the basic skills of reading and writing is a key priority, bolstering employability and reducing re-offending as is the achievement of work skills qualifications.
	Offender education spend has trebled from £57 million in 2001 to £183 million this year. 36 per cent. of prisoners are engaged in education, up from 30 per cent. 94,200 prisoners improved their literacy, language or numeracy skills by at least one level between 2001-04 and gained 249,104 work skills qualifications in total. The introduction of the Offender Learning and Skills Service planned and funded by the LSC should enable us to build on this issue.

Prisoners

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what projection he has made of the prison population in England and Wales on  (a) 1 October,  (b) 1 January,  (c) 1 April and  (d) 1 July in each year to April 2012.

David Hanson: Prison population projections have been published in Home Office Statistical Bulletin 11/06 (July 06). Three scenarios (high, medium, low) have been calculated. All figures relate to the last day of the month. The projected prison populations closest to 1 October, 1 January, 1 April and 1 July in each year to April 2012 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  End of month  High  Medium  Low 
			 September 2007 81,600 80,340 79,090 
			 December 2007 80,200 78,710 77,200 
			 March 2008 83,300 81,590 79,840 
			 June 2008 84,670 82,730 80,730 
			 September 2008 85,970 83,740 81,500 
			 December 2008 84,690 82,160 79,670 
			 March 2009 87,920 85,100 82,370 
			 June 2009 89,410 86,290 83,320 
			 September 2009 90,680 87,290 84,030 
			 December 2009 89,370 85,700 82,160 
			 March 2010 92,560 88,620 84,800 
			 June 2010 94,020 89,810 85,700 
			 September 2010 95,210 90,720 86,290 
			 December 2010 93,810 89,040 84,290 
			 March 2011 96,930 91,880 86,810 
			 June 2011 98,310 92,970 87,590 
			 September 2011 99,420 93,760 88,050 
			 December 2011 97,940 91,950 85,930 
			 March 2012 100,980 94,660 88,320 
		
	
	Revised prison population projections will be published in August 2007.

Young Offenders

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many young people were in young offender institutions in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: Young Offender Institutions accommodate sentenced prisoners aged from 15 to 21. At the end of June 1997 there were 7,949 sentenced young offenders including 1,673 aged under 18. At the end of May this year there were 9,137 sentenced young offenders including 1,894 aged under 18.

Queen's Speech

John Heppell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will consult Parliament and the public on the contents of the Queen's Speech.

Jack Straw: Last Wednesday my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister set out the details of the content of the provisional list of Bills for the next parliamentary Session. His purpose was such that our Government's initial thinking, previously private, could be the subject of widespread discussion and public debate. Full information is now available on the Cabinet Office website and in hard copy. We want to hear from all Parliamentarians, members of the public and individual groups their views on what was proposed.

Victims of Crime and Witnesses: Support

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to make additional support available to victims of crime and witnesses in court proceedings.

Maria Eagle: The Government have already done much to support victims and witnesses in criminal proceedings. We have:
	Introduced special measures such as live links, video-recorded evidence-in-chief and intermediaries. An independent evaluation in 2004 found that one-third of witnesses would not have been willing or able to give evidence without special measures
	Given £30 million annually to Victim Support, who provide the Witness Service in every court
	Introduced a statutory Code of Practice to give victims legal rights for the first time
	Spent £2.75 million on new court live link systems to help witnesses give evidence since 2006
	Met the target of having separate waiting facilities in 90 per cent. of magistrates courts ahead of schedule.

Prisoner Rehabilitation Programmes

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the impact of prison overcrowding on prisoner rehabilitation programmes.

David Hanson: The main risk entailed by overcrowding is that prisoners do not complete offending behaviour programmes because they are transferred to another establishment before the programme is completed.
	The Prison Service monitors the delivery of all offending behaviour programmes closely. Less than 1 per cent. of those who started offending behaviour programmes in 2006-07 failed to complete because of transfer.

Probation Services

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the impact of contestability on probation services; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: If we are to tackle re-offending effectively, we need a flexible approach which brings together all those with a contribution to make. We need to be able to commission services at national, regional and local level according to need. Contestability will enable specialist, low-volume, high-cost services to be commissioned at a national or regional level, where that makes sense.
	But it also enables the local lead provider to continue to act as provider and commissioner. Lead providers will concentrate on delivering core offender management, while commissioning much of the interventions work from local providers. Provided their performance meets the requirements, the lead provider in a probation area will be the probation trust.

Early Release Scheme

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to end the scheme of early release of prisoners.

David Hanson: The end of custody licence was introduced on 29 June as a temporary measure. It is too early to say how long the scheme will be in operation. We will keep under the review the length of time it will remain in use in the light of new prison capacity coming on stream and the review by Lord Carter.

Restraint Methods

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what mechanisms are in place to ensure that methods of restraint used in secure training centres are safe.

David Hanson: The methods used must be approved by the Secretary of State, who receives advice from the Youth Justice Board. The Board periodically appoints a panel of experts, including medical experts, to assess safety. A full review was conducted in 2004-05 and a further review is currently being established.

Magistrates Courts: Cheshire

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make a statement on the future provision of magistrates courts in Cheshire.

Maria Eagle: HMCS is committed to putting the public first in the delivery of justice. There are currently seven magistrates courts in Cheshire. HM Courts Service will continue to manage the court provision in Cheshire to maintain and improve the justice system for the public.

Governance of Britain Green Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to his Department's Green Paper on the governance of Britain, if he will make a statement on his future plans for constitutional reform, further devolution and electoral reform.

Michael Wills: The Prime Minister and I published the Green Paper, 'The Governance of Britain', on 3 July. A range of reforms have already been introduced, including:
	appointment of regional Ministers;
	publication of the proposed legislative programme, accompanied by the Prime Minister's statement to the House;
	revocation of legislation allowing special advisers to give orders to civil servants;
	publication of a revised ministerial code;
	creation of the National Security Council; and
	commitment of the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and Secretary of State for Defence to neither add nor subtract names from the final Honours List passed to HM the Queen.
	In the coming weeks, we intend to publish a consultation paper on the role of the Attorney-General, to launch the Goldsmith Review of Citizenship, to set up a Youth Citizenship Commission and to finalise arrangements for regional select committees. In the longer term, it is proposed to introduce a Constitutional Reform Bill to Parliament in the next Session, to complete the voting systems review and to begin work on engaging with the British people on a statement of values. As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said in his statement to the House:
	"As we focus on the challenges that we face...our starting point should be to discuss together and then...agree and set down the values, founded in liberty, which define our citizenship and help to define our country."—[ Official Report, 3 July 2007; vol. 462, c. 819.]
	Finally, while we do not envisage further devolution of powers from the UK Parliament to national Assemblies, the Green Paper makes it clear that the Government remain committed to enhancing democracy by devolving more power directly to the people. In line with this we are to consult on a range of measures to fully engage local people in local decisions.

Approved Premises

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what percentage of people housed in approved premises are categorised as  (a) high and  (b) very high risk in each region; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: As at 28 February 2007, the number of residents housed in Approved Premises in England and Wales categorised as  (a) high risk of serious harm was 1,165, representing 63 per cent. of all residents. The number categorised as  (b) very high risk of serious harm was 115, representing 6 per cent. of all residents. These figures do not include the Prospects Approved Premises, which are a specialist resource for offenders with substance misuse problems.
	The regional profile of offenders, by risk of harm, was as follows:
	
		
			   High risk of harm (A)  Very high risk of harm (B) 
			  Region  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 East 60 49 6 5 
			 East Midlands 102 65 16 10 
			 London 184 74 14 6 
			 North East 83 67 13 10 
			 North West 232 75 16 5 
			 South East 88 48 15 8 
			 South West 82 60 8 6 
			 Wales 68 77 8 9 
			 West of Midlands 120 56 9 4 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 146 57 10 4 
			 Totals 1,165 63 115 6

Approved Premises

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make a statement on his future plans for approved premises.

David Hanson: In September 2004, the Government published a strategy which directed Approved Premises in England and Wales to be used primarily to supervise certain high risk of serious harm offenders on release from custody into the community. That strategy was reviewed and reaffirmed in the context of the Child Sex Offender Review, the report of which was published in June this year.
	Approved Premises provide for enhanced supervision of offenders and are, therefore, a valuable public protection resource. Such supervision would be much more difficult to provide if offenders were dispersed into less suitable accommodation in the community.
	The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has recently initiated an Approved Premises Service Review, to make recommendations as to how the supervision of high risk of serious harm offenders in Approved Premises should be commissioned from April 2008.

Oakhill Secure Training Centre: Inspections

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he will place in the Library a copy of the inspection reports on Oakhill secure training centre by the Commission for Social Care Inspectorate.

David Hanson: In accordance with the service level agreement between Ofsted, the Youth Justice Board and the Ministry of Justice, papers received following the unannounced inspections at Oakhill secure training centre in January and April 2007 will be included as appendices to the report of the next announced inspection of the centre. The inspection will be conducted by Ofsted and is due to take place in October. The report will be a publicly available document.

Prisons: Construction

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what criteria his Department uses when evaluating the suitability of potential new sites for prisons.

David Hanson: As part of the 8,000 capacity programme, the National Offender Management Service is looking to identify potential new prisons sites within areas of greatest need.
	These sites should be close to or within large urban conurbations, enabling prisoners to be located close to home for family contact and to assist in finding employment on release; near or within reasonable travelling distance of courts; and to have good access to public transport and major roads.

TREASURY

Alcoholic Drinks: Young People

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many deaths of teenagers there were in which alcohol was cited as a cause or contributing factor in  (a) 2007 and  (b) the last five years.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 18 July 2007:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many deaths of teenagers there were in which alcohol was cited as a cause or contributing factor in (a) 2007 and (b) the last five years. I am replying in her absence. (150412)
	The latest year for which figures are available is 2006. The table below shows the number of deaths of teenagers where an alcohol-related cause was the underlying cause of death or was mentioned as a contributory factor on the death certificate. Figures are provided from 2001 to 2006.
	
		
			  Number of deaths of those aged 13 to 19 where an alcohol-related cause( 1)  was the underlying cause of death or was mentioned as a contributory factor on the death certificate the death certificate,( 2)  England and Wales, 2001-06( 3) 
			   Underlying cause of death  Mentioned as contributory factor 
			 2001 10 40 
			 2002 1 25 
			 2003 6 35 
			 2004 3 45 
			 2005 9 53 
			 2006 3 42 
			 (1 )Selected using the National Statistics definition of alcohol-related deaths. The International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes for the definition are listed as follows: F10—Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol G31.2—Degeneration of nervous system due to alcohol G62.1—Alcoholic polyneuropathy I42.6—Alcoholic cardiomyopathy K29.2—Alcoholic gastritis K70—Alcoholic liver disease K73—Chronic hepatitis, not elsewhere classified K74—Fibrosis and cirrhosis of liver (excluding  K74.3-K74.5—billiary cirrhosis) K86.0—Alcohol induced pancreatitis X45—Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol X65—Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to alcohol Y15—Poisoning by and exposure to alcohol, undetermined intent (2) The number of deaths—where an alcohol-related cause was mentioned as a contributory factor also includes those deaths where the cause was selected as the underlying cause of death. (3) Data are for deaths registered in each calendar year.

Childbirth

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many births there were in each month since January 2001.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 18 July 2007:
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your question on the number of births there has been each month since January 2001. (150955)
	The latest available figures on live births by month are for 2005. The table below shows the figures requested for the years 2001 to 2005 and covers live births registered in England and Wales.
	
		
			  Live births in England and Wales, 2001 to 2005, by month 
			   2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 January 50,591 49,165 50,579 53,028 52,527 
			 February 45,150 45,150 46,017 49,350 48,080 
			 March 49,793 48,972 50,845 52,793 53,671 
			 April 47,805 47,940 50,761 51,383 52,064 
			 May 51,474 50,726 52,910 52,726 53,610 
			 June 49,483 48,539 51,481 53,313 54,078 
			 July 51,328 51,984 55,425 55,619 56,526 
			 August 50,958 51,122 53,311 54,270 57,230 
			 September 50,680 51,933 54,124 55,556 56,396 
			 October 51,364 52,241 54,159 55,368 55,614 
			 November 48,417 48,611 50,599 52,899 52,279 
			 December 47,591 49,739 51,258 53,416 53,760 
			 Annual total 594,634 596,122 621,469 639,721 645,835 
			  Source: Birth Statistics, Series FM1 nos. 30 to 343 Table 2.4

Children's Centres: Finance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on funding for children's centres from April 2008.

Andy Burnham: Treasury Ministers have discussions on a wide range of issues as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of these discussions.

Death

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the death rate from  (a) stroke,  (b) heart disease, stroke and related illnesses and  (c) all cancers was among (i) people aged 65 years and under, (ii) people aged 75 years and under and (iii) all people, in each year since 1977.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 18 July 2007:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the death rate from (a) stroke, (b) heart disease, stroke and related illnesses and (c) all cancers was among (i) people aged 65 years and under, (ii) people aged 75 years and under and (iii) all people, in each year since 1977. I am replying in her absence. (150400)
	The latest year for which figures are available is 2005. The table below shows age-standardised mortality rates from 1977 to 2005 for (a) stroke, (b) all circulatory diseases, and (c) cancer, for people aged under 65, under 75, and all ages.
	
		
			  Age-standardised mortality rates( 1)  by age group, for selected causes of death( 2) , England and Wales, 1977-2005( 3) 
			   Stroke  All circulatory diseases  Cancer 
			   Under 65  Under 75  All ages  Under 65  Under 75  All ages  Under 65  Under 75  All ages 
			 1977 212 493 1,206 1,270 2,496 4,873 1,017 1,624 2,151 
			 1978 206 482 1,190 1,294 2,519 4,892 1,022 1,633 2,165 
			 1979 209 480 1,188 1,295 2,500 4,870 1,020 1,631 2,177 
			 1980 192 446 1,118 1,228 2,390 4,653 1,007 1,621 2,170 
			 1981 181 427 1,071 1,179 2,323 4,521 996 1,609 2,164 
			 1982 179 415 1,045 1,139 2,261 4,424 974 1,598 2,151 
			 1983 172 399 1,010 1,127 2,242 4,351 981 1,612 2,175 
			 1984 165 399 1,042 1,070 2,150 4,221 994 1,637 2,240 
			 1985 163 385 1,042 1,058 2,126 4,254 979 1,619 2,235 
			 1986 155 373 999 1,019 2,057 4,078 961 1,598 2,206 
			 1987 149 353 955 979 1,984 3,914 956 1,593 2,213 
			 1988 137 337 927 924 1,914 3,813 952 1,602 2,226 
			 1989 131 322 898 868 1,829 3,701 931 1,583 2,217 
			 1990 125 307 870 837 1,764 3,577 915 1,561 2,190 
			 1991 125 305 879 802 1,715 3,550 899 1,547 2,181 
			 1992 120 288 835 762 1,635 3,406 884 1,530 2,167 
			 1993 114 266 762 756 1,631 3,408 865 1,492 2,107 
			 1994 108 255 726 690 1,510 3,174 839 1,465 2,079 
			 1995 109 253 726 679 1,481 3,133 818 1,439 2,048 
			 1996 108 250 716 654 1,419 3,026 803 1,406 2,008 
			 1997 102 238 686 615 1,337 2,880 770 1,365 1,962 
			 1998 104 233 677 600 1,300 2,828 768 1,354 1,955 
			 1999 98 222 654 565 1,226 2,709 746 1,313 1,909 
			 2000 89 201 603 532 1,138 2,528 731 1,282 1,870 
			 2001 89 206 655 514 1,093 2,527 724 1,265 1,880 
			 2002 90 201 653 497 1,040 2,462 714 1,252 1,871 
			 2003 87 192 635 479 991 2,393 694 1,220 1,836 
			 2004 80 173 575 440 906 2,196 675 1,195 1,803 
			 2005 75 161 539 422 854 2,077 665 1,178 1,783 
			 (1) Rate per million population, age-standardised to the European Standard Population. (2) Selected using International Classification of Diseases, Eighth Revision (ICD-8) codes for the years 1977 to 1978, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes for the years 1979 to 2000, and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes for the years 2001 to 2005. The codes selected are listed as follows:  Stroke—ICD-8 430-438; ICD-9 430-438; ICD-10 I60-I69 All circulatory diseases—ICD-8 390-444.1, 444.4-458.9, 782; ICD-9 390-459; ICD-10 I00-I99 Cancer (all malignant neoplasms)—ICD-8 140-207; ICD-9 140-208; ICD-10 C00-C97 Between 1984 and 1992, a different interpretation of the World Health Organization selection Rule 3 was used to select the underlying cause of death in England and Wales, to that used internationally. This change means that comparisons between this period, and years before and after, should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the change on mortality statistics was analysed and reported in annual mortality publications for 1984 and 1993-94 (notes 1 and 2) . The introduction of ICD-10 for coding cause of death in 2001 also means that figures are not comparable with data for years before this date. Comparisons between the data before and after 2001 should therefore also be interpreted with caution. Articles specifically examining the effects of the change in classification for circulatory disease and cancer trends were published in Health Statistics Quarterly 22 and Health Statistics Quarterly 23 (notes 3 and 4). More information about these changes, as well as the results of the study, can be found on the National Statistics website at www.statistics.gov.uk/icd10mortality. (3) Data are for deaths registered in each calendar year between 1977 and 1992, and occurrences of death in each calendar year from 1993 onwards.  Notes: 1. Mortality statistics: Cause 1984. DH2 No. 11, pg viii-ix. 2. Mortality statistics: Cause 1993 (revised) and 1994. DH2 No. 21, pg xxv-xxxiii. 3. Griffiths C, Brock A and Rooney C (2004) The impact of introducing ICD-10 on trends in mortality from circulatory diseases in England and Wales. Health Statistics Quarterly 22, 14-20. 4. Brock A, Griffiths C, Rooney C (2004) The effect of the introduction of ICD-10 on cancer mortality trends in England and Wales. Health Statistics Quarterly 23, 7-17.

Defence: Expenditure

Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of UK GDP was spent on the defence budget, excluding the costs of campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: HM Treasury's Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2007 details historical and planned defence budget expenditure, excluding the additional costs of military operations. Annual GDP deflators can be found on the Treasury's website at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic_data_and_tools/gdp_deflators/data_gdpfig.cfm

Departments: Legislation

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what legislative provisions introduced by his Department since 1997 have not yet been brought into force.

Angela Eagle: 60 Acts have received Royal Assent between 1997 and 16 July 2007, all of those have been brought into force in full or in part.

Departments: Legislation

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what legislative provisions introduced by his Department since 1997 have been repealed.

Angela Eagle: Between 1997 and 16 July 2007 60 Acts have received Royal Assent, of those Acts 28 have been repealed in full. Of the 28 Acts that are no longer in force, 26 were Appropriation or Consolidated Fund Acts and the remaining two were repealed as a result of a consolidation exercise.

Departments: Telephone Services

Colin Breed: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many call centres were used by his Department in  (a) 2005-06 and  (b) 2006-07; and what assessment he has made of their efficiency in each year;
	(2)  how customer satisfaction with call centres used by his Department is measured; and what the results were of customer surveys carried out in 2005-06 and 2006-07.

Angela Eagle: There were no call centres used by HM Treasury in  (a) 2005-06 and  (b) 2006-07.

Government Departments: Buildings

Colin Challen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2007,  Official Report, column 939W, on Government Departments: buildings, what percentage of commercial sector buildings in England and Wales were occupied by the wider Government estate in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: The earlier answer provided figures for central Departments, their agencies and sponsored bodies. Other occupancy details are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Government Departments: ICT

Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which mission-critical information and communications technology projects in Government are proceeding without having gone through a Gateway review process.

Angela Eagle: The OGC Gateway™ process is mandatory for all projects and programmes within central civil Government. Gateway reviews are carried out at key decision points in the life of a project or programme.

Government Departments: ICT

Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  which mission-critical information and communications technology projects in Government are proceeding despite receiving one or more red lights in the Gateway review process; and, in each case, how many red lights were received and which Department was responsible for the project;
	(2)  in what circumstances mission critical information and communications technology projects may proceed despite a red light in the Gateway Review process.

Angela Eagle: A red Gateway review does not mean that the project or programme must be stopped. A red Gateway means that to achieve success there is at least one issue that requires immediate action.

HM Revenue and Customs: Census

Alistair Burt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what access  (a) HM Revenue and Customs and  (b) the Valuation Office Agency have to (i) Census data and (ii) Census test data.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 18 July 2007:
	As National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what access (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) the Valuation Office Agency have to (i) Census data and (ii) Census test data. (150639)
	Neither HM Revenue and Customs nor the Valuation Office Agency have any access to personal census data, including Census Test data. Under the provisions of Section 8 of the Census Act 1920 as amended by the Census (Confidentiality) Act 1991, personal census information which relates to an identifiable individual or household, is kept strictly confidential. It would be a criminal offence to disclose personal information from the census without lawful authority. These provisions also apply to Census Test data.
	Anonymised and aggregated statistical census data are available free of charge from the National Statistics website—www.statistics.gov.uk.

Immigrants: Employment

Chris Grayling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people who have entered the UK in the last 10 years are included in the figures for employment.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 18 July 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the number of people who entered the UK in the last ten years and who are in employment. (150245)
	For the three month period ending March 2007 there were 1.5 million overseas born people in employment who had entered the UK in the last ten years. This figure includes those who were children when they arrived.
	When interpreting this figure, it is important to bear in mind that the Labour Force Survey (LFS) is not designed to cover everyone who is present in the UK. The survey may undercount the numbers of people who were born overseas for the following reasons :-
	The LFS sample covers people living in private households, those in National Health Service (NHS) accommodation, and students living in halls of residence who have a UK-resident parent. Students living in halls of residence who do not have a UK-resident parent are not covered by the sample.
	The LFS does not cover people living in other types of communal establishment (such as hostels, hotels, boarding houses, or mobile home sites).
	Individuals living at sampled addresses are generally included in the survey only if they regard the address as their main residence. Those who have been living at the address for less than six months are not eligible to take part in the survey.
	The survey results are weighted to estimates of the 'usually resident' UK population living in private households, NHS accommodation and student halls of residence. The population figures cover long-term international migrants (people who change their country of usual residence for 12 months or more). They do not include people moving to the UK for less than 12 months, nor do they exclude from the usually resident population people moving out of the UK for less than 12 months.
	The LFS estimates at this detailed level are only consistent with the UK population estimates published in February and March 2003 and they do not incorporate the more recent population estimates that are used in the headline labour market series.
	Estimates are taken from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.

Office of Government Commerce: Reviews

Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will hold discussions with ministerial colleagues on ensuring that departmental audit committees act on recommendations of Gateway reviews;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that Ministers hold regular reviews of mission critical ICT projects being undertaken by their Department.

Angela Eagle: The role of departmental audit committees in scrutinising information about a Department's major projects and programmes, including information from Gateway reports, and regular reporting for Ministers on mission critical projects, has been raised by the Public Accounts Committee in their report, 'Delivering successful IT-enabled business change' [HC113 5 June 2007]. The Government will be responding to the PAC's recommendation in a Treasury Minute.

Public Expenditure: Wales

Paul Murphy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to review the Barnett formula for allocating the block grant for Wales.

Andy Burnham: The Government have no plans to review the Barnett formula.

Taxation: Environment Protection

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of  (a) central and  (b) local government environmental taxes on cutting (i) toxic and (ii) carbon emissions.

Angela Eagle: The environmental taxes levied by Government are the climate change levy, landfill tax and aggregates levy.
	The climate change levy is estimated to have reduced emissions by a cumulative 16.5 million tonnes of carbon up to 2005 and by 2010 it is estimated to deliver savings of over 3.5 million tonnes of carbon per year.
	Landfill tax is expected to save up to 0.2 MtC a year by 2010 and, between 1997-98 and 2005-06 the amount of active waste disposed to landfill fell by 14 per cent.
	The aggregates levy is also achieving its environmental objectives; there has been an 8 per cent. reduction in sales of primary aggregates between 2001 and 2005.

Taxation: Environment Protection

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what environmental taxes are levied by central Government.

Angela Eagle: The environmental taxes levied by Government are the climate change levy, landfill tax and aggregates levy. The Government recognise that other taxes, such as fuel duty and air passenger duty, have a positive environmental impact and can be used to achieve environmental aims and that other measures such as vehicle excise duty have been reformed to build in environmental incentives.

Unemployment: Young People

James Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many 16 to 18-year-olds are not in education, employment or training, broken down by constituency in ascending order.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 18 July 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about young people not in employment, education or training.
	Table 1 attached, shows the numbers of 16 to 18 year olds not in full-time education, employment or training, resident in Great Britain parliamentary constituencies, in ascending order, for the 12 months ending in December 2006, from the Annual Population Survey. The table shows that for the majority of constituencies the smaple size is too small to provide estimates. For the remaining constituencies the number of persons, aged 16 to 18, not in full-time education, employment or training, is less than 2,500 in all cases.
	Estimates for a subset of the population in a small geographical area, are based on very small sample sizes, and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty.
	As the information is extensive, a copy of this table has been placed in the House of Commons Library.

Visits

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1879W, on visits, whether he stayed in British Government accommodation in each location.

Angela Eagle: I have nothing further to add to my hon. Friend's previous answer.

HEALTH

Accident and Emergency Departments

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in which accident and emergency departments turnaround teams have been deployed, as stated on page 23 of the Cabinet Office's Capability Review of his Department, published on 22 June 2007; at what cost to the public purse in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: In the past a team consisting of people with clinical and national health service management experience provided support to individual NHS trusts, giving them advice and guidance on delivering and sustaining the accident and emergency (A and E) four hour target.
	The level of support to organisations varied at different times, including offering a range of advice and support from one-off or occasional telephone advice through to intensive visits. It is therefore not possible to provide a definitive list of every trust that has had some form of contact with the team, nor to provide the cost in each case.
	Such a team no longer exists, as the A and E four hour target has been achieved and is now an operational standard for the NHS.
	In addition, the former national health service Modernisation Agency's Emergency Services Collaborative was a national time limited programme that aimed to improve emergency care across the whole system; improve patient, carer and staff experience and reduce total journey times through A and E departments. The Department allocated £30 million to the national health service Modernisation Agency to fund this national service improvement programme.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many attendances there have been at accident and emergency departments  (a) in total and  (b) per 100,000 population in each year since 1997-98 (i) in England and (ii) broken down by strategic health authority area.

Ben Bradshaw: Information is not available in the format requested. Available information is provided in the following tables.
	
		
			  Total attendances at accident and emergency (A and E) departments 1997-98 to 2001-02 for England and by regional health authority 
			   Attendances 
			  Region  1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02 
			 England 14,364,146 14,280,388 14,629,025 14,293,307 14,044,018 
			 Northern and Yorkshire 1,908,884 1,900,148 1,940,457 1,884,713 1,891,519 
			 Trent 1,344,814 1,324,409 1,329,038 1,303,643 1,335,057 
			 West Midlands 1,690,182 1,689,095 1,740,155 1,682,401 1,609,279 
			 North West 2,248,105 2,184,748 2,233,799 2,181,244 2,130,246 
			 Eastern 1,123,343 1,131,896 1,173,271 1,171,833 1,177,060 
			 London 2,486,731 2,495,141 2,584,316 2,548,166 2,407,563 
			 South East 2,144,443 2,145,683 2,154,529 2,080,948 2,107,992 
			 South West 1,417,644 1,409,268 1,473,460 1,440,359 1,385,302 
			  Notes: 1. From 2003-04 onwards, attendances at NHS Walk-in Centres are included in the collection for A and E attendances. 2. Mid 1999 population estimates have been used for years 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000. 3. Mid 2000 population estimates have been used for years 2000-01 and 2001-02. 4. Mid 2005 population estimates have been used for years 2005-06 and 2006-07. 5. Strategic health authorities (SHAs) were established from 1 April 2002. Prior to this, the national health service in England had regional health authorities.  Source: Department of Health datasets QMAE and KH09, Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 1991 Census Based: Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 2001 Census Based: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	
		
			  Total A and E attendances per 100,000 population 1997-98 to 2001-02 for England and by regional health authority 
			   Attendances per 100,000 population 
			  Region  1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02 
			 England 28,703 28,703 29,403 28,588 28,090 
			 Northern and Yorkshire 29,991 29,991 30,627 29,714 29,821 
			 Trent 25,727 25,727 25,817 25,273 25,882 
			 West Midlands 31,657 31,657 32,614 31,533 30,163 
			 North West 33,126 33,126 33,869 32,998 32,227 
			 Eastern 20,888 20,888 21,651 21,464 21,559 
			 London 34,250 34,250 35,474 34,551 32,645 
			 South East 24,667 24,667 24,768 23,807 24,117 
			 South West 28,703 28,703 29,853 28,951 27,845 
			  Notes: 1. From 2003-04 onwards, attendances at NHS Walk-in Centres are included are included in the collection for A and E attendances. 2. Mid 1999 population estimates have been used for years 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000. 3. Mid 2000 population estimates have been used for years 2000-01 and 2001-02. 4. Mid 2005 population estimates have been used for years 2005-06 and 2006-07. 5. Strategic health authorities were established from 1 April 2002. Prior to this, the national health service in England had regional health authorities.  Source:  Department of Health datasets QMAE and KH09, Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 1991 Census Based: Office for National Statistics  Mid year population estimates, 2001 Census Based: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	
		
			  Total attendances at A and E departments 2003-04 to 2006-07 for England and by SHA 
			   Attendances 
			  SHA  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 England 14,391,522 16,516,845 17,837,180 18,759,164 18,922,275 
			 North East 798,137 862,871 885,107 986,532 1,038,224 
			 North West 2,241,614 2,748,990 2,949,987 3,133,096 3,222,663 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 1,569,742 1,800,965 1,800,664 1,805,091 1,791,096 
			 East Midlands 929,554 1,010,549 1,099,010 1,152,131 1,180,075 
			 West Midlands 1,598,354 1,764,923 1,851,038 1,913,232 1,937,396 
			 East of England 1,180,380 1,392,253 1,580,932 1,628,944 1,668,379 
			 London 2,634,278 3,078,876 3,533,903 3,849,121 3,746,972 
			 South East Coast 1,154,415 1,290,821 1,385,852 1,460,227 1,481,493 
			 South Central 829,418 948,750 1,046,384 1,074,212 1,094,942 
			 South West 1,455,630 1,617,847 1,704,303 1,756,578 1,761,035 
			  Notes: 1. From 2003-04 onwards, attendances at NHS Walk-in Centres are included are included in the collection for A and E attendances. 2. Mid 1999 population estimates have been used for years 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 3. Mid 2000 population estimates have been used for years 2000-01 and 2001-02 4. Mid 2005 population estimates have been used for years 2005-06 and 2006-07 5. Strategic health authorities were established from 1 April 2002. Prior to this, the national health service in England had regional health authorities  Source:  Department of Health datasets QMAE and KH09, Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 1991 Census Based: Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 2001 Census Based: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	
		
			  Total A&E attendances per 100,000 population 2002-03-2006-07 for England and by SHA 
			   Attendances per 100,000 population 
			  SHA  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 England 28,988 33,129 35,608 37,197 37,521 
			 North East 31,447 33,980 34,777 38,562 40,582 
			 North West 33,045 40,399 43,210 45,764 47,072 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 31,438 35,952 35,736 35,646 35,370 
			 East Midlands 22,012 23,765 25,680 26,754 27,403 
			 West Midlands 30,134 33,176 34,703 35,658 36,109 
			 East of England 21,769 25,486 28,790 29,395 30,106 
			 London 35,737 41,675 47,572 51,201 49,842 
			 South East Coast 27,802 30,950 33,091 34,653 35,157 
			 South Central 21,312 24,267 26,678 27,193 27,718 
			 South West 29,303 32,362 33,828 34,662 34,750 
			  Notes: 1. From 2003-04 onwards, attendances at NHS Walk-in Centres are included are included in the collection for A and E attendances. 2. Mid 1999 population estimates have been used for years 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000. 3. Mid 2000 population estimates have been used for years 2000-01 and 2001-02. 4. Mid 2005 population estimates have been used for years 2005-06 and 2006-07. 5. SHAs were established from 1 April 2002. Prior to this, the NHS in England had regional health authorities.  Source:  Department of Health datasets QMAE and KH09, Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 1991 Census Based: Office for National Statistics Mid year population estimates, 2001 Census Based: Office for National Statistics

Accident and Emergency Departments: Preston Royal Infirmary

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) average and  (b) longest waiting time was for treatment in accident and emergency in Preston Royal Infirmary in each of the last five years.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is not collected centrally. The percentage of people seen within four hours at accident and emergency departments in the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Percentage under four hours 
			 2002-03 93.8 
			 2003-04 99.1 
			 2004-05 99.8 
			 2005-06 99.7 
			 2006-07 99.7 
			  Source: Department of Health dataset QMAE

Ambulance Services: Gloucestershire

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) full-time and  (b) part-time ambulance stations were located in (i) the Cotswold district, (ii) Stroud district, (iii) Cheltenham borough, (iv) city of Gloucester, (v) the Forest of Dean and (vi) Tewkesbury borough in (A) 1997 and (B) the latest date for which figures are available; and how many he forecasts there will be by the end of (1) 2007 and (2) 2008.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is not held centrally.
	The hon. Member may wish to approach Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust for this information.

Ambulance Services: Rotherham

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the proposed closure of the Yorkshire ambulance service 999 call centre in Rotherham; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Responsibility for local health services now lies with the local national health service. It is now for local NHS organisations to plan, develop and improve local health services according to the health needs of their local populations and within the resources allocated to them. In this instance, this is a matter for the Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of people diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease in England;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of people diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease in the last  (a) 12 months,  (b) five years and  (c) year for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: The Department does not collect this information.

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether his Department has any plans to assess the effectiveness of using the ankle brachial pressure index as a means of assessing vascular disease risk;
	(2)  what guidance his Department has issued to primary care trusts on the management of peripheral arterial disease.

Ann Keen: Conducting assessments and providing guidance for new and existing therapies within the national health service is handled by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). NICE can be asked to develop guidance from topics suggested by various sources, including the Department's, health care and public health professionals, patients, carers and the general public.

Chiropody

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many non-registrants with the Health Professions Council used the protected title of  (a) chiropodist and  (b) podiatrist in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: From the figures that we received from the Health Professions Council (HPC), 288 non-registrants of the HPC were issued with a warning letter on protected titles in 2006-07. 136 concerned registrants who may have been using the title or implying that they were chiropodists/podiatrists.

Community Hospitals: Capital Investments

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria his Department uses to assess the needs of primary care trusts in taking decisions to allocate capital funding for community hospitals.

Ben Bradshaw: Each primary care trust makes its own assessment of need and the appropriate pattern of services for its own locality. "Our health, our care, our communities: investing in the future of community hospitals and services" sets out ten design principles for primary care trusts (PCTs) to use as a starting point when considering local service redesign and the role of community hospitals. Strategic health authorities (SHAs) will determine how proposals from PCTs in their area can deliver the strategic needs and priorities across the SHA area.

Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how frequently representatives of  (a) the devolved Administrations and  (b) his Department meet the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 17 July 2007
	Officials from both the Department and the devolved Administrations meet the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence on a regular basis and formally each quarter.

Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the statutory mechanisms are for monitoring the performance of the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 17 July 2007
	The Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence is required by law to submit its annual accounts to the Secretary of State, devolved administrations, Comptroller and Auditor General, in respect of each year. Its annual report is also laid before Parliament.
	There are also non-statutory quarterly meetings where the Department, along with the devolved Administrations meet the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence to discuss performance and finance.

Dental Services

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many orthodontic practices used up their annual allocation of units of orthodontic activity before the end of the last contract year, broken down by primary care trust.

Ann Keen: The Department does not monitor the performance of individual providers of national health service orthodontic services. It is for primary care trusts, as the commissioning bodies, to monitor services and, where appropriate, take up any concerns with the provider.

Dental Services

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentist practitioners ran out of units of dental activity before the end of the contract year in the most recent period for which figures are available, broken down by primary care trust.

Ann Keen: Information is not held in the form requested. Primary care trusts (PCTs) agree local contracts with providers of dental services (who may be individual practitioners or dental practices), setting out the level of services to be provided over the course of each year. The Department does not assess the performance of individual providers. It is for PCTs, as the commissioning bodies, to monitor services and, where appropriate, take up any concerns with the provider.

Dental Services: Children

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the effects of delay in receiving orthodontic treatment upon the dental health of children.

Ann Keen: The optimum timing of orthodontic treatment depends upon the age and development of individual patients. The Department is supporting primary care trusts in developing commissioning strategies for orthodontic treatment that are more closely related to local health needs and support timely access to care.

Dental Services: Kent

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are registered with a dentist in Kent; how many NHS dental practices there are in Kent; and how many are accepting new NHS patients.

Ann Keen: Registration data no longer form part of the data available under the new national health service dental contractual arrangements. The new measure is patients seen in the previous 24 months and is not comparable to the registration data for earlier years.
	Numbers of patients seen, by adult and child, in the previous 24 months ending 31 March, 30 June, 30 September, 31 December 2006 and 31 March 2007 in West Kent Primary Care Trust (PCT) and Eastern and Coastal Kent Teaching PCT are available in section F1 of annex 3 of the "NHS Dental Statistics for England Q4: 31 March 2007" report. This report is available in the Library.
	Information is as at England, strategic health authority and PCT level and the report, published by the Information Centre for health and social care, is also available at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dentalq4
	As at 9 July 2007, there were 103 NHS dental surgeries within West Kent PCT and 97 NHS dental surgeries within Eastern and Coastal Kent Teaching PCT.
	The areas have been defined using practice postcodes within the PCT area. The figure provides a snapshot of the number of addresses with a contract at the specified date.
	No information concerning the amount of time dedicated to NHS work by individual dentists within practices is available.
	The number of dental surgeries that are accepting new NHS patients is not collected centrally.
	 Sources:
	The Information Centre for health and social care
	NHS Business Services Authority (BSA).

Doctors: Career Structure

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to take legal action against the IT suppliers of the Medical Training Application Service system.

Ann Keen: holding answer 16 July 2007
	 The IT supplier of the MTAS system is Methods Consulting Ltd. The contract with Methods Consulting Ltd. is under review.

Doctors: Foreign Workers

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers  (a) approved and  (b) announced that doctors from overseas wishing to apply for specialty training must apply successfully for a highly skilled migrant programme visa following the end of permit-free medical training; and what assessment the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board has made of the effects of the policy.

Ann Keen: There is no requirement that overseas doctors wishing to apply for specialty training in 2007 must successfully apply for leave to remain pursuant to the highly skilled migrant programme.
	In order to be considered for posts alongside United Kingdom and European economic area (EEA) applicants overseas doctors must, in addition to meeting all other eligibility criteria, have the right to work in the UK without restriction on 5 February 2007. Applicants not meeting this requirement will be considered only once suitable UK and EEA applicants have been awarded posts.

Doctors: Training

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of junior doctors who have had their offers for a specialist training post withdrawn by deaneries in the last three months;
	(2)  what procedures are in place to prevent junior doctors being informed in error that they have been offered a specialist training post; what estimate he has made of the number of junior doctors so informed; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Keen: The information requested is not held centrally.
	Deaneries are responsible for making offers to successful applicants. Deaneries are concerned to ensure that any offers made are accurate, and in the small number of incidents where there has been an error have apologised for any inconvenience and distress to individuals.

Doctors: Training

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department has received from junior doctors whose deaneries have withdrawn offers of a specialist training post in the last three months.

Ann Keen: Due to the way that correspondence is recorded, this information cannot be supplied without incurring disproportionate cost.

Donors

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has made to increase laboratory testing capacity for the identification of suitable donor organs.

Ann Keen: Decisions on capacity planning are for local decision.

Education: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are in place to ensure that the service increment for teaching funding was spent on purposes for which it was allocated.

Ann Keen: The role of the Department should be to focus on outputs and accountability rather than on ensuring a fixed amount of money is spent for a particular purpose regardless of local priorities.
	The service increment for teaching (SIFT) funding was issued as an element of the multi professional education and training budget, which was allocated to strategic health authorities (SHAs) as part of the bundle of central budgets for 2007-08.
	In 2007-08 a service level agreement (SLA) and accountability framework has been issued to ensure that SHAs are held to account for the training they support.
	With regards to SIFT funding, the SLA requires SHAs to provide sufficient medical and dental placements for local medical and dental students and to ensure both the quality of training and adequate support for the students. SHAs have been asked to submit investment plans showing how they will deliver the requirements of the SLA.

Family Practitioner Services: Working Hours

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision was made in his Department's 2002 Spending Review settlement to finance out-of-hours care.

Ben Bradshaw: The funds for providing out-of-hours primary medical care services were included within various funding streams relating to primary medical services, but the total out-of-hours element was not separately identified.
	Prior to 2004-05, general practitioners (GPs) were contractually responsible for their registered patients 24 hours a day. GPs covered by the general medical services contract received their funding based on a number of fees and allowances. Only a proportion of these were related to the time of day at which the care was provided. GPs covered by the personal medical services scheme had locally agreed contracts with their primary care trust.

General Practitioners

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date his Department received the approval of HM Treasury for the new contract for the delivery of General Medical Services in the form in which it was agreed in June 2003.

Ben Bradshaw: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 7 June 2007,  Official Report, column 651W.

General Practitioners

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 246W, on general practitioners, on what dates discussions have taken place at ministerial level since June 2003 as part of the process of reviewing the General Medical Services contract.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department and HM Treasury Ministers and officials regularly meet to discuss a wide range of issues. As was the case with previous Administrations it is not the practice of Government to provide details of all such meetings.

General Practitioners

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 246W, on general practitioners, on what dates regular discussions have been held with NHS Confederation, now NHS Employers.

Ben Bradshaw: Discussions with the NHS Confederation, now NHS Employers, frequently take place involving officials at all levels and have included the appropriate Ministers in post at the time.

General Practitioners: Gravesham

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP practices in Gravesham offer out of hours services; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is not held centrally. Local primary care trusts are responsible for ensuring that there is a high quality, sustainable out of hours service for all their local population.
	All out of hours services must be delivered to the national quality requirements, ensuring patients have access to consistently high quality responsive care and advice regardless of where they live.

Health Hazards: Lighting

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2007,  Official Report, column 992W, on health hazards: lighting, what guidance his Department has issued on the treatment of individuals with medical conditions adversely affected by the use of energy saving lightbulbs.

Ann Keen: No specific guidance has been issued on the treatment of those with medical conditions which may put them at risk of being adversely affected by energy saving lightbulbs.

Health Professions Council

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what factors he took into account in deciding that the Health Professions Council should have an appointed membership.

Ben Bradshaw: Chapter 1 of the White Paper 'Trust, Assurance and Safety' sets out a series of measures to ensure the independence of the national professional regulators. In order to exercise their functions effectively and command the confidence of patients, the public and the professions, they need to be seen to be independent and impartial in their actions. To ensure that this is the case, the White Paper proposes that:
	there will be equal membership between lay and professional members, to ensure that professional concerns do not dominate their work;
	all councils will be more accountable to Parliament, presenting annual reports to the United Kingdom Parliament;
	to dispel the perception that councils are overly sympathetic to the professionals they regulate, council members will be independently appointed;
	for councils to focus on strategy. They will become smaller and more-board like, and independently appointed.

Health Professions Council

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many non-registrants with the Health Professions Council were found to be in breach of the regulations on protected titles in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: From the figures that we received from the Health Professions Council (HPC), 288 non-registrants of the HPC were issued with a warning letter on protected titles in 2006-07.

Health Services: Greater London

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Prime Minister's oral answer of 11 July 2007, what the source was for the Prime Minister's statement that proposals for the future of health care in London will include the creation of 150 polyclinics.

Ben Bradshaw: The technical report which details the analytical work undertaken to support 'Healthcare for London—A Framework for Action' gives an estimated figure of 150 polyclinics across London. The technical report was published alongside 'A Framework for Action' on 11 July 2007.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children  (a) under the age of (i) one and (ii) five and  (b) over five years old died from a hospital acquired infection in each year since 2000, broken down by NHS trust.

Ann Keen: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes annual reports on statistics of deaths with meticillin resistant  Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemias or  Clostridium difficile infection recorded on the death certificate. The latest reports into deaths involving MRSA and  Clostridium difficile infection were published in Health Statistics Quarterly 33 in February 2007. Data on the number of deaths involving  Clostridium difficile are not available for the year 2000.
	The tables show the total number of deaths with either of these organisms mentioned on the death certificate in children (persons under 16) in England and Wales, by age group, and the number which occurred in national health service hospitals.
	It is not possible to assume from this that any infection affecting the deceased was contracted in the hospital where the death occurred. Patients may be transferred between hospitals, nursing homes and other establishments or may have acquired their infections before admission to the hospital in which they died. Data are not provided by individual NHS trust because of the risk of deductive disclosure.
	
		
			  Number of death certificates mentioning MRSA( 1)  in England and Wales among children (ages 0 to 15), 2000-05( 2) 
			  Age  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  All places of death  
			 Under one 0 1 0 2 1 6 
			 One to four 0 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Five to 15 1 0 0 0 0 0 
			
			  Deaths in NHS hospitals( 3)  
			 Under one 0 1 0 1 1 6 
			 One to four 0 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Five to 15 1 0 0 0 0 0 
			 (1) Identified using the methodology outlined in annual ONS reports on deaths involving MRSA. (2) Deaths occurring in 2000-05. (3) Place of death records where the death occurred. This information does not imply anything about where any infection was acquired. 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of death certificates mentioning Clostridium difficile( 1)  in England and Wales among children (ages 0 to 15), 2000-05( 2) 
			  Age  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  All places of death 
			 Under one 0 0 0 0 0 
			 One to four 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Five to 15 0 0 0 1 0 
			   
			  Deaths in NHS hospitals( 3) 
			 Under one 0 0 0 0 0 
			 One to four 0 0 1 0 0 
			 Five to 15 0 0 0 1 0 
			 (1) Identified using the methodology outlined in annual ONS reports on deaths involving  Clostridium difficile. (2) Deaths occurring in 2001-05. Data for 2000 is not available as deaths in this year were coded to the Ninth International Classification of Disease (ICD-9) which does not have a specific code for  Clostridium difficile. (3) Place of death records where the death occurred. This information does not imply anything about where any infection was acquired.

Hospitals: Locums

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which trusts are taking steps to appoint three month locums to hospital posts.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is not held centrally. We are aware that there are locum appointments to training being advertised during the round two period. Although locum appointments to training are Deanery approved training posts, it is for local trusts to determine their duration. They can be for any period but are usually from three to six months.

Hospitals: Ministers of Religion

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision is made to hospital chaplains in the national health service; what the total expenditure upon chaplains was in each of the last five years; and what the budget is for chaplains in 2007-08.

Ann Keen: The Department does not collect data on national health service hospital chaplaincy.
	The Department is committed to the principle of ensuring that patients and staff in the NHS have access to spiritual care, whatever faith or belief system they follow.
	NHS trusts are responsible for delivering religious and spiritual care in a way that meets the diverse needs of their patients. How they do so is a matter for local determination. Budgetary control has been devolved to NHS trusts to allow them to make decisions about how best to use the resources available locally.

Hospitals: Parking

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued to hospitals on the need to provide car parking spaces for patients.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department issued Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 07-01 'Transport management and car parking' in 2006. A copy is available in the Library. Section 8 of the document provides detailed guidance on determining levels of car parking provision at hospital sites. It reflects the differing parking needs of patients attending hospital, such as those who are day patients or have appointments at outpatient clinics.

Hyperactivity: Drugs

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what scientific evidence is available to support the existence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder for which Ritalin and psychiatric drugs are prescribed.

Ann Keen: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a complex neuro developmental disorder characterised by core symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity that are outside the range of normal for the developmental stage of the person and cause impairment in functioning and was first described in 1902. Diagnosis is based on recognising these behavioural traits and making a judgment as to whether they are outside the range of normal. The traits are present in people without ADHD, and lie along a continuum. There is no diagnostic test as yet.
	ADHD is similar to other conditions where there is not yet a biological marker and symptoms are on a continuum, such as blood pressure and height. There is evidence of genetic and environmental components to the aetiology of ADHD and it is highly heritable but the inheritance is complex and likely to be due to a combination of genes acting together. Molecular genetics shows the relationship between various markers of ADHD and neurotransmitter receptor and transporter genes.

Junior Doctors: Location

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what circumstances NHS trusts are required to provide relocation assistance to junior doctors transferring substantial distances for specialty training.

Ann Keen: Relocation assistance to junior doctors is a matter for the local national health service trusts to decide.

Junior Doctors: Training

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2007,  Official  Report, column 257W, on junior doctors: training, who the members of the project board were.

Ann Keen: The Medical Training Application Service project board comprised representatives of the Department, NHS Employers, the Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans, the Committee of General Practice Education Directors, National Association of Medical Personnel Specialties, Postgraduate Deanery Business Managers, the devolved Administrations and Methods Consulting.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the type and rate of complications for each type of dialysis access in each year since 2000.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the mean distance from patients' homes to dialysis treatment centres;
	(2)  how many patients received treatment for anaemia prior to undergoing renal replacement therapy in the last period for which figures are available; and what the average duration of treatment was.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the average time taken for patients to be referred to renal teams before starting dialysis in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally. Part one of the national service framework for renal services sets standards to be met locally over a ten-year period from 2004. This includes timely and appropriate preparation for renal replacement therapy, preferably a year before dialysis is expected to be needed, and timely and appropriate access to surgery for vascular or peritoneal access (ideally six months before starting haemodialysis, four weeks before starting peritoneal dialysis).

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what transport is provided to patients receiving dialysis from their homes to treatment centres.

Ann Keen: The national service framework (NSF) for renal services makes clear that patients should have access to efficient patient transport services. It is up to local national health service trusts to determine exactly how to implement the NSF by providing efficient transport services to patients based on their individual circumstances.

Maternity Units: Infectious Diseases

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of  (a) MRSA,  (b) C lostridium difficile and  (c) other hospital acquired infections there were in each year since 2000 in (i) neonatal and (ii) maternity units, broken down by NHS trust.

Ann Keen: The specific information requested concerning prevalence in neonatal and maternity units is not collected. The best available data are given as follows but will include both community and health care acquired infections.
	 Meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
	The Health Protection Agency (HPA) collects data on the sex and age of cases of MRSA bloodstream infections through its voluntary surveillance scheme. The scheme does not collect data on where infection was acquired (e.g. neonatal unit, or maternity unit).
	The youngest of the standard age groups is under one year.
	
		
			  MRSA bacteraemia reports from children aged under one year (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) 2000 to 2005 
			   Total 
			 2000 37 
			 2001 44 
			 2002 41 
			 2003 66 
			 2004 47 
			 2005 63 
			  Note: Figures correct at 5 June 2007.  Source: HPA voluntary surveillance scheme 
		
	
	 Clostridium difficile
	The HPA's voluntary reporting scheme collects data on age and sex of cases. The scheme does not collect data on where infection was acquired (e.g. neonatal unit, or maternity unit). The following table shows the number of cases of  Clostridium difficile for children from birth to one in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from 2000-06.
	
		
			  Age  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Under one month 36 38 36 35 34 37 
			 One to five months 36 51 49 58 48 42 
			 Six to 11 months 35 40 34 43 44 40 
		
	
	The information is likely to be an underestimate as not all laboratories report. Further, testing of children under two years of age may be limited owing to a general belief that the presence of  C. difficile is not usually clinically significant in this age group as asymptomatic carriage, including production of toxins A and B, is common in this age group. No other data on healthcare associated infections are available by age group.

Maternity Services: Expenditure

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on neonatal units in each of the last five years in  (a) cash and  (b) real terms.

Ann Keen: This information is not available centrally.

Maternity Services: Intensive Care

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many premature babies were transferred away from their local hospital in order to find an intensive care cot in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: The information is not collected centrally.

Medicine: Overseas Students

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on the financial effect of the new immigration rules on the international medical students from non-European Economic Area countries who choose to study medicine in the UK.

Ann Keen: There has been no discussion between the Home Office and the Department on this issue.
	We have retained a special provision in the Immigration Rules for non-European Economic Area doctors who have completed their undergraduate medical training in the United Kingdom which will give them the opportunity to complete their basic medical training and, in the process gain registration with the General Medical Council.

Mental Health Services: Greater London

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the numbers of people provided with mental health counselling services by  (a) NHS bodies and  (b) publicly-supported voluntary groups in each London borough in (i) the last 12 months and (ii) each of the last three years.

Ivan Lewis: The data requested are not held centrally.

Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus: Animals

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the threat to human health of MRSA in  (a) live animals and  (b) animal meat.

Ann Keen: The scientific evidence does not indicate that Meticillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus in live animals or meat is a significant public health risk. However if the Health Protection Agency receives samples from people who have a link with veterinary work the strains are examined closely to assess whether there may be any animal origin. The Department's expert advisory committee on antimicrobial resistance and health care associated infection will keep this area under review.
	Following advice on appropriate cleaning and handling, storage and cooking of meat is important in preparing food safely and preventing/minimising the risk of contamination by micro organisms.

Midwives

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will introduce a guaranteed placement scheme for newly qualified midwives in England.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department of Health has consulted with NHS Employers, strategic health authorities and the Social Partnership Forum on maximising employment opportunities for newly qualified health care graduates. The consistent message from these consultations is that solutions need to be flexible, locally driven and founded on partnerships between employers, staff side and the higher education sector. Any new initiatives also need to be appropriately tested first.
	Accordingly, East of England strategic health authority (SHA) have offered to undertake a feasibility study into establishing a local voluntary guaranteed employment scheme. The feasibility study will last for one year and was launched on 15 May by East of England SHA. The outcome of the feasibility study will determine whether employment guarantee schemes are a viable option. If so, the nature and length of these schemes will be defined upon relevant factors established through the study.

NHS Next Stage Review

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the statement of 4 July 2007,  Official Report, column 970, on the NHS next stage review, on what projects the £750 million community hospital capital funding has been  (a) allocated to be spent and  (b) already spent; what mechanisms have been used to allocate funding; and how much has been (i) allocated and (ii) spent on each project.

Ben Bradshaw: Allocations from the £750 million community hospital and services capital fund will be spread over the five years ending in 2010-11. Fourteen capital schemes have been approved, supporting a range of different types of community facilities:
	new primary care centre in Washington in Sunderland;
	redevelopment of the Gosport War Memorial hospital;
	development of a new community health centre in Yate, Bristol;
	establishment of a Healthy Living park in Minehead, West Somerset;
	redevelopment of the Barking hospital;
	new health and social care centre in Teddington;
	new primary care centre in Hastings;
	redevelopment of the Royal South Hampshire hospital;
	new primary care centre in Ashfield;
	redevelopment of the Felixstowe community hospital;
	new primary care centre in Rotherham;
	new community hospital in Bristol;
	new community hospital in Hornsey; and
	additional community services in Calderdale and Kirklees.
	The total cost of these schemes is £94.56 million. £33.6 million has been allocated to primary care trusts in 2007-08 reflecting spending profiles. We do not monitor actual spend on individual schemes at the centre. That is for primary care trusts and their strategic health authorities.
	Proposals are assessed against the ten design principles set out in "Our health, our care, our community: investing in the future of community hospitals and services".

NHS Treatment Centres: Construction

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS treatment centres were delivered by 2005; and for what the  (a) construction costs,  (b) scheduled date for start of construction,  (c) expected completion date and  (d) status at 31 December 2006 is of each treatment centre scheme.

Ben Bradshaw: By the end of 2005 the following phase one national health service treatment centres were delivered.
	
		
			  Contract location name  Construction start date  Expected completion date( 1)  Status at 31 December 2006 
			 Eccleshill NHS Treatment Centre January 2004 May 2005 Operational 
			 Ilkeston (Interim) December 2003 January 2004 Closed 
			 Bassetlaw (Interim) February 2004 April 2004 Closed 
			 Barlborough NHS Treatment Centre May 2004 June 2005 Operational 
			 Daventry Treatment Centre Not applicable October 2003 Operational 
			 Shepton Mallet NHS Treatment Centre October 2004 June 2005 Operational 
			 Greater Manchester Surgical Centre Not applicable November 2005 Operational 
			 Peninsula NHS Treatment Centre June 2004 May 05 Operational 
			 Bodmin NHS Treatment Centre February 2005 December 2005 Operational 
			 Gainsborough NHS Treatment Centre December 2004 January 2005 Operational 
			 Boston NHS Treatment Centre September 2004 April 2005 Operational 
			 Clifton Park NHS Treatment Centre December 2004 December 2005 Operational 
			 Capio New Hall Hospital NHS Treatment Centre Not applicable September 2004 Operational 
			 Kidderminster NHS Treatment Centre Not applicable March 2005 Operational 
			 St. Mary's NHS Treatment Centre February 2005 December 2005 Operational 
			 Will Adams NHS Treatment Centre January 2005 September 2005 Operational 
			 Mid and South Buckinghamshire NHS Diagnostic Centre January 2005 July 2005 Operational 
			 (1) Expected completion dates are as at financial close, actual completion dates may vary. 
		
	
	For the phase one independent sector treatment centre schemes that involved the construction of new facilities, forecast costs based on the bidder's financial models were included within the bid price and are commercially sensitive. As the construction cost risk lies with the preferred bidder, the Department are not advised of the actual construction costs.

NHS Treatment Centres: Finance

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which treatment centres reached financial close in  (a) 2006 and  (b) 2007 so far; which are expected to reach financial close in (i) 2007, (ii) 2008 and (iii) 2009; and what the actual or expected capital cost and completion date is of each scheme.

Ben Bradshaw: Four phase 2 diagnostic independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) schemes reached financial close in December 2006 (north-west, south-west, London and west midlands). Two phase 2 elective schemes have to date reached financial close in 2007—Cheshire and Merseyside in May 2007, and Northumberland, Tyne and Wear in June 2007.
	Of those phase 2 schemes which have reached financial close, all contracts are for a five-year term except the Cheshire and Merseyside electives scheme, which is for a four-year term.
	The following phase 2 schemes are moving through the procurement process and are expected to reach financial close by the end of 2007.
	 Phase 2 electives:
	Avon Gloucestershire and Wiltshire;
	Cumbria and Lancashire elective surgery;
	London North;
	Hampshire Isle of Wight;
	Greater Manchester CATS (A);
	Greater Manchester CATS (B);
	Essex;
	North East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire;
	Cumbria and Lancashire CATS; and
	Renal.
	 Phase 2  d iagnostics
	South East;
	North East;
	PET CT (North); and
	PET CT (South).
	Financial close dates are based on current planning assumptions and ongoing negotiations and therefore subject to change. On average, phase 2 schemes run to five-year contract terms.
	Two further ISTC schemes, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire and Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridge are expected to move forward through the procurement process to financial close through 2007-08.
	No phase 2 ISTC schemes are currently expected to reach financial close in 2009.
	As the procurement of phase 2 is ongoing, it is not possible for commercial reasons to provide information on expected costs relating to individual schemes, including any expected capital costs.

NHS Treatment Centres: Private Sector

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 17 May 2007,  Official Report, column 925W, on NHS treatment centres: private sector, when he expects to publish the Healthcare Commission's full report on the quality of care in such centres.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 2 July 2007
	 I understand the Healthcare Commission intends to publish its full report on the Quality of Care in independent sector treatment centres on the 19 July 2007.

NHS Treatment Centres: Private Sector

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a list of the contracts that have been placed with independent sector treatment centres, broken down by NHS trust together with the annual quantum of treatments purchased and the annual contract cost.

Ben Bradshaw: The following phase one independent sector treatment centre contracts are in place:
	
		
			  Facility name  Lead primary care trust  Total activity 
			 Eccleshill NHS Treatment Centre Bradford and Airedale Teaching PCT 121,455 
			 Midlands NHS Treatment Centre South Staffordshire PCT 150,755 
			 Barlborough NHS Treatment Centre Barnsley PCT 21,449 
			 Daventry (service completed) Closed 4,880 
			 Shepton Mallet NHS Treatment Centre Somerset PCT 111,094 
			 Greater Manchester Surgical Centre Oldham PCT 89,726 
			 Peninsula NHS Treatment Centre Plymouth PCT 49,534 
			 Bodmin NHS Treatment Centre Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT 56,194 
			 Boston NHS Treatment Centre Lincolnshire Teaching PCT 14,512 
			 Clifton Park NHS Treatment Centre North Yorkshire and York 24,241 
			 Horton NHS Treatment Centre (Banbury) Oxfordshire PCT 44,759 
			 Cobalt NHS Treatment Centre Newcastle PCT 20,351 
			 Capio New Hall Hospital NHS Treatment Centre Hampshire PCT 15,818 
			 Horton NHS Treatment Centre (Banbury) Milton Keynes PCT 7,248 
			 Blakelands NHS Treatment Centre Milton Keynes PCT 22,551 
			 Capio Reading Hospital NHS Treatment Centre Milton Keynes PCT 12,588 
			 Gainsborough NHS Treatment Centre Lincolnshire Teaching PCT 9,242 
			 Nottingham NHS Treatment Centre Nottinghamshire County Teaching PCT 342,113 
			 Kidderminster NHS Treatment Centre Worcestershire PCT 36,000 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside NHS Treatment Centre West Cheshire PCT 99,268 
			 Mid Kent NHS Treatment Centre West Kent PCT 104,110 
			 North East London NHS Treatment Centre Barking and Dagenham PCT 58,345 
			 Mid and South Buckinghamshire Diagnostic Centre Buckinghamshire PCT 74,880 
			 St Mary's NHS Treatment Centre Portsmouth City Teaching PCT 355,299 
			 Will Adams NHS Treatment Centre Medway Teaching PCT 32,345 
			 Sussex Orthopaedic NHS Treatment Centre Brighton and Hove City PCT 55,547 
			 Havant Hampshire PCT 78,600 
			  Notes: 1. The above excludes pathfinder contract and GSUP1 and GSUP2. 2. The total activity column includes all indicative activity volumes i.e. procedures, diagnostics and outpatients for the duration of the contract. These figures are subject to change and are based on estimates. 
		
	
	Two phase two ISTC schemes have contracts awarded. The Cheshire and Merseyside scheme is contracted to deliver approximately 67,000 procedures and the Northumberland, Tyne and Wear scheme is contracted to deliver approximately 83,300 procedures over the duration of the contracts. These figures are subject to change.
	Contract values are not disclosed as they are considered commercially confidential. The Department is currently reviewing what information is provided on phase one contracts, however, no decision has yet been taken.

NHS Trusts: Infectious Diseases

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS trusts employ a director of infection prevention and control.

Ann Keen: "The Health Act 2006 Code of Practice for the Prevention and Control of Health Care Associated Infections" which came into force on 1 October 2006 requires all national health service bodies to designate a Director of Infection Prevention and Control (DIPC). The Healthcare Commission (HCC) will be monitoring compliance with the code of practice as part of the annual health check.
	The data are not available in the form requested. However, the following table shows the number of DIPCs in position from HCCs 2005-06 assessment as at 31 March 2006.
	
		
			   Total number of DIPCs in position  Total number of NHS establishments 
			 Ambulance Trusts 31 31 
			 Learning Disability Trusts 3 3 
			 Mental Health Trusts 82 83 
			 Primary Care Trusts 302 303

NHS: Buildings

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set a long-term target to eliminate the NHS estate repair backlog by April 2011; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: All national health service trusts are responsible for managing their assets to ensure that they are in good condition and safe for patients and staff. This includes managing investment to undertake any repairs that may be required to secure and maintain compliance with fire and health and safety requirements.
	These investment decisions will be prioritised locally and will be based on risk assessment, reconfiguration planning, available resources and the introduction of new facilities to replace those that no longer meet local service needs.
	As part of the overall objective to reduce the extent of the Department's central performance management of the NHS, trusts are responsible for satisfying the Healthcare Commission that care and treatment is provided from well designed and well maintained buildings.

NHS: Complaints

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times he and his predecessor decided a reference from a local overview and scrutiny committee should not go to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel in the last two years; and how many references from overview and scrutiny committees he and his predecessor received in that period.

Ann Keen: As of 10 July 2007, there were 23 referrals from overview and scrutiny committees to the Secretary of State for Health between 1 July 2005 and 10 July 2007. The Secretary of State has sought the advice of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel in relation to eight of the 23 referrals.

NHS: Consultants

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 June 2007 to (Mr. Francois) the hon. Member for Rayleigh,  Official Report, column 1313W, on NHS: consultants, what estimate was made of the cost of new consultants' contracts at the time of the 2002 comprehensive spending review settlement for his Department; and what his current estimate is of the cost of the contracts over the period of that review.

Ann Keen: We estimated during SR2002 that the costs of introducing the consultant contract would be an additional £565 million over the first three years.
	The National Audit Office (NAO) report on the consultant contract, published in April 2007, included two sets of plausible methods for calculating the actual cost of the contract. The NAO estimated that the contract may have cost the national health service, over the first three years between £649 million and £765 million more than if consultants had remained on the old contract, compared to departmental funding of £715 million over that period.

NHS: Crimes of Violence

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the number of attacks on  (a) NHS and  (b) social care staff who are working in the community.

Ann Keen: In April 2003, the national health service security management service (NHS SMS) was created and assumed responsibility for tackling violence against NHS staff. A comprehensive strategy detailing both preventative and re-active measures to reduce the number of attacks against NHS staff working in the community has been implemented and includes the creation of the role of a professionally trained and accredited local security management specialist (LSMS) for each health body.
	The LSMS is responsible for the management of issues related to attacks against NHS staff supported by a national structure and guidance such as 'Tackling Violence Against Staff 2007, Not Alone—a Guide For Lone Workers 2005', and the 'Non Physical Assault Explanatory Notes 2004'.
	In April 2004, mandatory conflict resolution training for all NHS front line staff was introduced with the aim to equip staff with the skills to deal effectively with potentially violent situations.
	The NHS SMS remit includes social care staff where they are employed directly by the NHS or deliver NHS services.

NHS: Crimes of Violence

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on strengthening criminal penalties for those who attack  (a) NHS and  (b) social care staff.

Ann Keen: In April 2003, the NHS Security Management Service (NHS SMS) was created and assumed responsibility for tackling violence against national health service staff. The NHS SMS remit includes social care staff where they are employed directly by the NHS or deliver NHS services.
	The NHS SMS is currently working with the Home Office to introduce new powers to deal with nuisance and disturbance behaviour on NHS premises with a view to minimising the potential for attacks against NHS staff.

NHS: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide the data behind the statement made by the Chief Executive of the NHS on page nine of his Annual Report 2006-07, published on 21 June 2007, that the NHS has been in underlying deficit for the last 20 years.

Ben Bradshaw: The statement was based on a combination of available data but also knowledge about the way in which we know national health service organisations have previously been able to mask the existence, or extent, of deficits prior to the transparency we have brought in.
	We know, from audited summarised accounts, that in 11 out of the last 20 years the NHS recorded a bottom line net deficit, ending 2005-06 with a net deficit of £547 million.
	We also know that, throughout this time, a number of factors may have worked to mask the existence or extent of the deficit. For example, prior to 2001-02, when the NHS operated under a cash financing regime based on annual allocations and in-year cash injections, the payment of bills could be delayed to deliver in-year spending controls and manage the financial outturn. Following the introduction of Resource Accounting and Budgeting rules, the NHS developed the practice of using capital resources to support current revenue expenditure and were allowed to move money round the system by way of brokerage and other forms of support.
	On this basis, it is reasonable to conclude that the NHS has been in underlying deficit for the last 20 years.
	However, the introduction of a stronger, fairer and more transparent financial regime, coupled with a renewed emphasis on performance management, has enabled the NHS to end 2006-07 in its strongest financial position for many years, to tackle underlying deficits, and to establish a firm and sustainable financial position for 2007-08 and beyond.

NHS: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which people in  (a) the NHS and  (b) his Department did not take sufficient action to tackle deficits inside the NHS, as referred to on page 12 of the NHS Chief Executive's Annual Report 2006-07, published on 21 June 2007.

Ben Bradshaw: The national health service Chief Executive was not referring to individual people. The point he was making was that because the deficits we were facing last year had built up over a number of years, it follows that both the NHS and the Department as a whole had not taken enough action at the appropriate times to stop this build up.

NHS: Flags

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has given to health trusts on the flying of the Union flag on a daily basis at national health service premises; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Individuals, local authorities and other organisations, including national health service trusts, may fly the Union flag whenever they wish subject to compliance with any local planning requirements. This is considered a matter for local determination and no guidance has been issued to the NHS.

NHS: Land

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the review of surplus NHS land to explore opportunities for its transfer and development to provide additional homes will apply to property owned by NHS foundation trusts.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 16 July 2007
	 The Department is examining how the review will apply to the NHS foundation trust sector.

NHS: Manpower

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are employed in the NHS in  (a) England and  (b) Gloucestershire; and what percentage of each are employed in (i) management, (ii) administrative, (iii) scientific, (iv) research and (v) front line medical roles.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is shown in the table. The annual national health service workforce census does not separately identify research staff.
	
		
			  NHS staff in England and Gloucestershire( 1)  by specified staff group, as at 30 September 2006 
			  Headcount 
			  Of which: 
			England  Percentage  Gloucestershire( 1)  Percentage 
			 All NHS staff(2)  1,338,779 100 16,185 100 
			   
			 Frontline medical staff(3)  675,260 50.4 8,243 50.9 
			  Of which:  
			  HCHS Doctors(4) 90,243 6.7 819 5.1 
			  GPs(5) 36,008 2.7 622 3.8 
			  Qualified Nurses (incl Practice Nurses) 398,335 29.8 4,447 27.5 
			  Qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff 134,498 10.0 1,616 10.0 
			  Qualified ambulance staff 16,176 1.2 739 4.6 
			 Clerical and administrative staff  224,302 16.8 2,606 16.1 
			 Managers and senior managers  36,751 2.7 530 3.3 
			 (1) The figures for Gloucestershire are based on 2006 primary care trust and trust boundaries and consists of Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Gloucestershire Partnership NHS Trust, Gloucestershire PCT, South Gloucestershire PCT and Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust. (2) Total for all NHS staff will not equal the sum of the component parts as only specified staff groups are shown. (3) Front line medical staff has been defined as HCHS doctors, general medical practitioners, qualified nurses (including GP practice nurses), qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff and qualified ambulance staff. It does not include support to clinical staff such as nursing assistants, trainees and helpers. (4) Excludes medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are GPs working part-time in hospitals. (5) General medical practitioners includes GP Providers, GP Others, GP Retainers and GP Registrars.  Sources: The Information Centre non-medical, medical and dental and general and personal medical services censuses.

NHS: Reviews

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the terms of reference are of Professor Darzi's review of the NHS.

Ann Keen: holding answer 17 July 2007
	 The terms of reference are available in the Library.

NHS: Reviews

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether ongoing reconfigurations around the UK will be affected by Professor Darzi's review of the NHS.

Ann Keen: holding answer 17 July 2007
	I refer the hon. Member to the oral statement given by my right. hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 4 July 2007,  Official Report, columns 961-78W.

NHS: Reviews

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects Professor Ara Darzi to complete his NHS review.

Ann Keen: holding answer 17 July 2007
	The review will report by June 2008 with an interim report in October 2007.

NHS: Reviews

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Professor Darzi's NHS review will assess the impact of private sector health providers upon the NHS.

Ann Keen: holding answer 17 July 2007
	The terms of reference for the review are available in the Library and we will set out more detail on the work of the review in due course.

Nurses: Children

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many  (a) neonatal and  (b) paediatric nurses there were in England in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the number due to retire over the next five years;
	(2)  how many full-time equivalent advanced neonatal nurse practitioners were employed by hospital trusts in England in each of the last five years.

Ben Bradshaw: The annual national health service work force census does not separately identify the number of neonatal nurses from the rest of the nursing work force.
	The number of paediatric nurses in the last five years is shown in the following table.
	We do not have collated information on the estimated numbers of retirements, this is a matter for strategic health authorities to build into their local work force plans.
	
		
			  Qualified nurses, midwives and health visitors working in the paediatric area of work 
			  Headcount, England 
			   2002  2003  2004  2005  2006( 1) 
			 Paediatrics 18,014 18,437 18,917 19,178 18,634 
			 (1) More accurate validation in 2006 has resulted 9,858 duplicate records being identified and removed from the non-medical census. (These 9,858 duplicate records, broken down by main staff group, are: 3,370 qualified nurses; 1,818 qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff; 2,719 support to doctors and nurses; 1,562 NHS infrastructure support; and 389 in other areas.) The impact of duplicates on FTE has been minimal with the removal of 507.

Nurses: Schools

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to increase recruitment of school nurses following reported trends in the number of such nurses reaching retirement age; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: It is for individual primary care trusts to determine how to use the funding allocated to them to commission services to meet the school nursing needs of their local populations. Work force planning is for strategic health authorities to manage locally.
	The Department along with the Department for Children, Schools and Families is continuing to ensure that the profile of school nurses remains high nationally. In partnership the Departments have published; "Looking for a school nurse?" and a "School Nurse: Practice Development Resource Pack", which will support the expansion and development of the school nursing service.
	Ministers and the chief nursing officer continue to communicate the importance of school nurses to the national health service, and work with professional bodies to promote their modern role. Managers will need to develop their workforce to support their local school nursing services in ways best suited to meet the needs of their community.
	As at September 2006 there were 1,129 school nurses with a school nurse qualification. This is an increase of 35 per cent. since 2004.

Nurses: Schools

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that every primary care trust will have at least one full-time, year round, qualified school nurse by 2010 as referred to in the Choosing Health paper.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department along with the Department for Children, Schools and Families is continuing to ensure that the profile of school nurses remains high nationally.
	In partnership the Departments have published 'Looking for a school nurse?' and a 'School Nurse: Practice Development Resource Pack', which will support the expansion and development of the school nursing service.
	Ministers and the Chief Nursing Officer continue to communicate the importance of school nurses to the national health service, and work with professional bodies to promote their modern role. Managers will need to develop their work force to support their local school nursing services in ways best suited to meet the needs of their community.
	The Department is also ensuring that newly appointed regional directors of public health and strategic health authorities work force directors are focused on this issue.
	However, it is for individual primary care trusts to determine how to use the funding allocated to them to commission services to meet the school nursing needs of their local populations.
	As at September 2006 there were 1,129 school nurses with a school nurse qualification. This is an increase of 35 per cent. since 2004.

Nurses: Training

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what level of continuous improvement training is provided in the NHS for specialist continence nurses as part of their continuing professional development; and what his plans are for the future provision of such training.

Ann Keen: Education and training, including continuing professional development, for all nurses is the responsibility of their employers. In addition, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the nurses' regulatory body, require that they maintain competence in their field of practice, as a condition of their continued registration.

Transplant Surgery: Kidneys

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people  (a) received a kidney transplant and  (b) were on the national transplant list for kidneys in each year since 2000; and what the average waiting time from referral to the list and surgery was.

Ann Keen: The information is as follows.
	
		
			  Kidney transplants( 1) , United Kingdom 2000-06, by donor type 
			   Donor type 
			   Deceased  Living  Total 
			 2000 1,361 348 1,709 
			 2001 1,385 358 1,743 
			 2002 1,350 372 1,722 
			 2003 1,297 451 1,748 
			 2004 1,442 463 1,905 
			 2005 1,312 543 1,855 
			 2006 1,396 671 2,067 
		
	
	
		
			  Numbers listed for a kidney transplant( 1)  at the end of year, UK, 2000-06 
			   Status 
			   Active  Suspended( 2)  Total 
			 2000 4,891 1,235 6,126 
			 2001 4,934 1,289 6,223 
			 2002 5,046 1,373 6,419 
			 2003 5,156 1,402 6,558 
			 2004 5,299 1,666 6,965 
			 2005 5,736 1,520 7,256 
			 2006 6,331 1,827 8,158 
			 (1) Including all combinations eg kidney/pancreas. (2) Suspended means the patient has been temporarily removed from the list. This happens for such reasons as being too ill to undergo the operation or being away on holiday. 
		
	
	
		
			  Waiting time to kidney transplant, registrations to the list 2000-03, UK 
			  Age  Days 
			 Adult 836 
			 Paediatric(1) 159 
			 (1) Under 18 years

Transplant Surgery: Manpower

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many transplant co-ordinators are employed in the NHS; and what the figure was in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally.

Wheelchairs: Finance

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many electric indoor and outdoor wheelchairs were funded by the NHS in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many electric indoor and outdoor wheelchairs are being funded by  (a) strategic health authorities and  (b) primary care trusts;
	(3)  what total sum of money has been allocated to the NHS in 2007-08 to provide  (a) manual wheelchairs,  (b) electric indoor and outdoor wheelchairs and  (c) other wheelchairs for people with mobility problems;
	(4)  what advice he gives to primary care trusts on assessments for indoor and outdoor wheelchairs.

Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not held centrally. All national health service wheelchair services are funded out of general allocation funding to primary care trusts. It is up to individual PCTs to determine their allocation of resources to wheelchair services and to set their own eligibility criteria for their service. Decisions about the type of wheelchair provided to an individual will be based on an individual assessment of their needs and the PCTs eligibility criteria.
	NHS wheelchairs are supplied and maintained free of charge to people whose need for a wheelchair is permanent. Indoor/outdoor electric chairs can be provided to disabled people who cannot propel a manual chair. Attendant controlled power chairs are also available.